The Incredible Poke-Odyssey
by Cullen
Summary: A boy from our world magically gets sent to an alternate Pokemon world.
1. A Whole Familiar, Yet New World

Hi again everyone. I've decided to write another Pokemon fanfic.  
I hope you have fun reading this one as much as you did my last fic.

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey

By Cullen Pittman

Chapter 1

A Whole Familiar, Yet New World

13 year old Cameron Fusterman was lying on his bed playing Pokemon on his Game Boy. He was right at the end of the whole game where he was battling Gary, the smart-mouthed opponent who kept appearing throughout the game wanting to challenge him. Gary had released his final Pokemon,  
a Venusaur. Cameron pushed the button and released his Ninetales. He ordered it to use its fire blast attack which finished off Venusaur making him the winner and finishing the game. Cameron watched with delight as Professor Oak came up to Cameron's character congratulating him on becoming the new Pokemon champion. Cameron smiled as his six best Pokemon were getting inducted in the Pokemon Hall of fame. They were Blastoise, Golbat, Farfetch'd, Machoke, Ninetales, and Exeggutor. And finally his name appeared saying that he caught exactly 104 Pokemon. Then the credits started to roll on his Game Boy.

"Wow, I can't believe that I've finally completed the entire game", said Cameron proudly. "I guess all there is to do now is to start the game again and try going after Mewtwo." But then Cameron looked at his digital clock. "Which will be later", he said as he turned off his Game Boy, "Right now it's time for what got me into this game."

Cameron quickly turned on the TV so he could watch his favorite cartoon,  
which happened to be Pokemon. Cameron loved watching the adventures of Ash Ketchum, Misty, Brock, and Pikachu. They all seemed like best friends and Cameron secretly wished that he could just jump into the TV and join them on their adventures. "Like that could ever happen", he thought while smirking. "If I did that, I'd have a broken TV in my room along with glass stuck in my head which I could show my grandkids. Oh well." He thought as he continued watching Pokemon.

In todays episode, Ash and his friends came across a traveling circus that appeared in his home town known as Pallet. The ringmaster Stella had a problem with a Mr. Mime that just lied around eating potato chips and never performed for her. Brock volunteered Ash to dress up like a Mr.  
Mime so the show could go on. When it was time for the show to begin,  
the evil members of Team Rocket burst into the big top and kidnapped Ash with a net thinking he was a valuable Pokemon. Then they sailed off in their Meowth shaped balloon. Ash's friends were about to go and save him until Ash's mom came up and told them not to worry about it.  
She told them that once Team Rocket finds out they had Ash instead of a Mr. Mime, they'll probably let him go. Misty, Brock, Stella, and Pikachu suddenly agreed and they all went off to have lunch at Mrs. Ketchum's house.

Cameron couldn't believe what he just saw. Ash's so-called friends got him into this mess and they went off to have lunch with his mother without feeling the slightest bit guilty. "I guess Ash doesn't have true friends or a kind and caring mother", thought a disappointed Cameron. He was waiting to see what happens next when all of a sudden,  
the cable went out.

"NO!!!" shouted Cameron, "You can't do this to me! I have to see what happens to Ash!!!" He then remembered his pocket TV which ran on battery power. He yanked it out of his bedside table drawer and clicked it on.  
Only it wouldn't turn on.

"I don't believe this!" he grumbled, "The batteries must be dead!" Cameron scrounged around his room for some good batteries but couldn't find any. He then looked at his Game Boy, openned up the hatch, took out the batteries and placed them in his pocket TV.

"Ash would be proud of me", thought Cameron has he was about to click on the TV and find out what happened to Ash. Little did Cameron knew was that he was going to find out in a most unusual, no make that twisted way!

Just then, a bolt of lightning shot out of the tiny screen shocking Cameron like crazy. He screamed as everything went black. He then found himself floating in a black world of nothingness. Just then a pack of Pikachu started to dance around him in a circle singing a delightful melodies of pika-pikas.

"This can't be happening", said Cameron who was confused but yet delighted. Just then a flock of Spearows flew by chasing away all the Pikachu. Cameron shut his eyes waiting to be pecked to death, but didn't feel a thing. He opened his eyes and saw that the Spearows were flying right through him like they were illusions. Cameron turned around and saw the Pikachu and Spearows flying off into the darkness.

"Totally weird", said Cameron. Just then a giant computerized flashing bird started to fly up to him. "Porygon!!!" cried Cameron, "From the banned seizure episode of Pokemon!" he quickly shut his eyes again so his brain would be safe from this bizzare blinking bird. After a minute, he peeked to make sure Porygon was gone and it was. Cameron was now surrounded by a pack of Gastlies, Haunters, and Gengars, the ghost versions of Pokemon. Cameron watched in fear as the ghosts flew around him making scary faces and spooky noises. Then one of the Haunters opened its huge mouth and Cameron got sucked in it like a huge black hole.

"NOOOOO!" cried Cameron as he entered Haunter's scary mouth. He then found himself falling through a smog filled sky about to land on top of a strange looking building. Luckily someone had the sunroof up so he wouldn't smash through any broken glass and was even luckier that he landed on a nice soft bed. "I guess those Lucky Charms for breakfast and for lunch really paid off", thought Cameron as he rubbed his head from that traumatizing experience.

He found his glasses lying next to him. He put them on and discovered he had cartoon hands. He sat up and looked at the front mirror and discovered that he was a drawn anime-style kid. His blonde hair all shaggy, big green eyeballs, and a mouth that can get really large sometimes, just like people in anime.

"This can't be happening to me", thought Cameron, "This all must be a dream. Yeah! I think I'll lie back down on this imaginary bed and I'll wake up soon." He laid back down when all of a sudden, he heard someone mumbling, "GET OF ME YOU LITTLE RUNT!"

Cameron quickly got up and felt something furry on his back. He brought it up close to his face and discovered it was an angry cat with a gold charm on its head.

"MEOWTH?" asked Cameron. The cat only replied by slashing its claws against Cameron's nose. Cameron screamed as he dropped Meowth on the floor.

"You could've at least have the consideration to drop me on the bed when I slash you", grumbled Meowth as he got up on his hind legs.

"What's all the racket in here?" called out a familiar woman's voice.

"Meowth, are you having another nightmare where you wake up and discover you're wearing cat's pajamas?" asked a familiar guy's voice.

Cameron had finished rubbing his nose and discovered that he was looking directly at Jessie and James, the two famous villians from Team Rocket. Jessie was wearing blue pajamas while James was wearing a pink nightgown with curlers in his hair. "Yes, you're definitely Jessie and James", said Cameron.

"That's Queen Jessie to you twerp!" said an angry Jessie.

"And King James to you", said James. "The royal emblem on my lovely frilly nightgown should tell you that I'm a mighty King!"

"Well then prepared to get crowned again!", sighed Jessie as she conked James on the back of his head.

"Wow", said Cameron, "I can't believe I'm staring at the real Team Rocket!"

"Yes", smiled Jessie, "I know it's a small insignificant honor for a peasant boy like you to talk, let alone gaze at the beautiful me. Which reminds me. Meowth, why have you let this plain-clothed urchin into your room? He might infest you and all of us with cooties!"

"Hey, this brat just appeared on my bed while I was dozing", protested Meowth. "He tried to use me as a pillow. Can you imagine the nerve? That's not how you treat a royal Pokemon monarch!"

"You're a king too?" asked Cameron who didn't look like he believed Meowth.

"You don't believe me?" said an even angrier Meowth, "I oughta shred you into kitty litter and dump you into my box. I believe the chef is cooking chili tomorrow!"

"I'm in trouble", whispered a nervous Cameron.

"TROUBLE?!" said Jessie and James while shaking.

"Oh no", grumbled Meowth, "You had to get them started!"

Jessie: "Prepare for trouble!"  
James: "And make it double!"

Cameron knew what they were about to say because he had heard them say their corny motto in almost every episode he watched.

Jessie: "To protect the world from devastation!"  
James: "To unite all peoples within our nation!"  
Jessie: "To denounce the evils of truth and love!"  
James: "To extend our reach to the stars above!"  
Jessie: "Queen Jessie!"  
James: "King James!"  
Jessie: "Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"  
James: "Surrender now or prepare to fight!"

"Royal Meowth, that's right!" said a tired Meowth.

It always annoyed Cameron when they kept saying that motto on TV. Real life seemed to be worse.

"Hey, why aren't you saying the Rocketville pledge of allegiance with us?!" shouted Jessie.

"Rocketville?!" gasped Cameron trying to stifle a laugh. Like these three bunglers could start up their own town let alone be rulers of it.

"This is complete blasphemy!" shouted James. "Do you like playing with fire little boy?! I remember that I used to play with fire all the time when I was younger. Then my parents took away my cigarette lighter at the tender age of three. Oh those painful memories!!!"

"Hey, I know why this kid is here!" said Meowth, "I bet he's a spy from those stinking rebels."

"Yes, that's probably it", Jessie smiled evily.

"Oh goody!" giggled James, "Our very first caught spy! Does this mean we can finally use our interrogation room?!"

"But of course!" smiled Jessie as she pulled a Pokeball out of her pajama shirt pocket.

"Arbok, wrap him up!" commanded Jessie. Cameron looked in fright at the huge purple cobra that pounced on him and wrapped him up in its strong coils.

* * * * * *

Cameron then found himself in a room still wrapped in Arbok's coils. A huge ceiling light shined over him while Arbok was wearing sunglasses. Jessie, James, and Meowth were huddled over Cameron staring at him with threatening eyes.

"What's your name and your age?" demanded Jessie.

"I'm Cameron Fusterman and I'm 13", said Cameron nervously.

"Where are you from and what's your job occupation?" demanded Meowth.

"I'm from Trenton, New Jersey and I'm a student", said Cameron.

"What's a six letter word that starts with U meaning paradise?" demanded James.

"Utopia?" said Cameron now puzzled.

"Perfect", smiled James as he wrote Utopia in his TV Guide crossword puzzle. "Thank you. I've been trying to figure that one out for months."

"Can we get back to more intelligent things please?!" shouted Jessie as she bopped James on the head.

"Utopia sure is heavenly", said a dazed James.

"And now for the 64 million dollar question", smiled Meowth. "Where is the secret location of the rebels' camp?"

"I, I, I don't know of any rebels", said a frightened Cameron. "The last thing I remember was watching the Pokemon show on TV and found myself ending up in your world!"

Jessie, James, and Meowth looked at the boy funny and then looked at each other. "He won't tell us a thing! These rebels sure train their spies good", said James, "Weird, but good."

"We'll get this twerp to talk", sneered Meowth, "Arbok, put the squeeze on 'em!"

Arbok was about to tighten its grip on Cameron until Jessie called out, "No wait Arbok. There are a lot of other fun ways to get little boys to talk."

"You're right Jess", smiled Meowth. "We can paint him banana yellow and throw him into a cage of starving Primeapes!"

"Or we can do like the Princess and the Pea and make our 1000 pound Snorlax the Princess and you know who can be the pea!" snickered James.

"No this has to be memorable for our very first interrogation", said Jessie. "But I can't think of one right now with these bags under my eyes. Let's all go back to bed and we'll deal with this twerp in the morning."

"Me too", yawned James, "I'm missing my beauty sleep."

"You wouldn't get enough beauty sleep if you got pricked by a spinning wheel and slept for a hundred years!" said Meowth.

"At least I don't leave milk stains on my sheets every night!" said James. Cameron laughed a little inside. These three were definitely the infamous Team Rocket.

"Enough of this bickering!" shouted Jessie. "James, come to bed! Meowth, you and Arbok take young Mr. Fusterman to our darkest, dankest, dungeon!"

"Oh all right!" grumbled Meowth as he opened the door and left the room while Arbok slithered along behind him still holding on to Cameron.

* * * * * *

Meowth opened up a cell located at the bottom of their palace. Arbok ejected Cameron out of its coils and he landed face down onto the hard black stone floor.

"I hope you enjoy your probably short stay here", said Meowth as he shut the cell door, "Tomorrow for breakfast we'll be bringing you pancakes, sausage, and chocolate milk."

"Really?" asked Cameron.

"Why are you looking so surprised?" asked Meowth.

"I thought they only served bread and water in dungeons", said Cameron.

"You mean there are people out there that sadistic they'd do that to their prisoners?" asked a shocked Meowth. "I like it! Just think how bigger our royal treasury would become. You're gonna get nothing but bread and water tomorrow. Thanks for the suggestion kid! Heh heh heh heh!", and he and Arbok left.

Cameron was sitting on his cot pinching himself trying to wake up from this nightmare but with no luck. He also tried slapping himself. He was even tempted to scoop out some of the dirty water from the nearby toilet and splash himself awake, but he wouldn't dare to that. Not even in a dream.

"I can't believe that I ever wished to be in this world", sighed Cameron, "No actually I wished that I could be with Ash, Misty, and Brock so technically my wish didn't really come true!" He reached into his pocket and found a bag of corn chips he was planning on eating later.

"I guess this'll be my last decent meal", sighed Cameron as he opened up the bag. Some of the chips were crushed because of Arbok, but most of them looked okay. As he calmly listened to the sound of his munching, he heard another sound as well. Something was digging its way through the stone floor. Cameron backed up into a corner in fear. Soon a small hole was made and the thing that made it crawled out. It was a rodent with armor that looked like sand.

"Hey, you're a Sandshrew aren't you?" said Cameron.

"Sandshrew!" said the rodent as it crawled around sniffing for food. It then eyed Cameron's corn chip bag and approached him.

"Do you like corn chips?" asked Cameron as he handed a big ripe chip to Sandshrew. Sandshrew took the chip with its claws and munched on it happily.

"Shrew!" it said gratefully.

"Your welcome", said Cameron who had figured out what Sandshrew said. He then sat down on the floor and took out another chip. Sandshrew jumped into Cameron's lap and ate that one as well. Cameron smiled as he fed his new friend half his chips and ate the other half himself. Sandshrew then licked Cameron's face while he laughed and forgot about the trouble that was in store for him in the morning.

"Can you understand me little Sandshrew?" asked Cameron hoping that all Pokemon could understand the human language.

"Shrew?" asked Sandshrew.

"I'm being held prisoner by these really bad people and I have to get out of here. Can you please help me escape?" he asked Sandshrew. Sandshrew just jumped out of Cameron's lap and crawled back down into the hole it made. Cameron looked down at the small hole and found Sandshrew gone.

"I guess he only stuck around just to get free chips", sighed a disappointed Cameron.

* * * * * *

An hour later, Cameron was lying in his cot unable to sleep. He was now sure that this was not a dream. But it seemed like a nightmare to him. Just then, the floor started to crumble and Cameron found himself lying in a big dirty pit. He stood up and brushed the dirt off of himself and found Sandshrew smiling at him. And behind the rodent was a huge tunnel.

"Did you dig that tunnel for me?" asked Cameron while a tear appeared in his eye.

"Shrew", replied the happy Sandshrew.

"Thank you my friend", said Cameron as he patted Sandshrew.

"What's going on here?" screamed Meowth as he, Jessie and James were looking at the huge hole in the cell that was supposed to contain their prisoner.

"Uh oh, time to blast off", said Cameron as he and Sandshrew ran through the tunnel.

"He's gone!" cried James, "And I had the thumb screws smoothly sanded just for him!"

"Not for long", shouted Jessie as she pulled out a Pokeball. "Go Lickitung!" Out of the ball popped a strange pink turtle like creature.

"Lickitung!" commanded Jessie, "Use that tongue of yours to track down our tasty tormentee!" Lickitung quickly stuck out its long tongue that was twice as long as its body and tasted around the huge tunnel.

Cameron was running through the dark tunnel with Sandshrew running beside him. He suddenly saw a light that would probably lead them to freedom. Just then Cameron tripped for something moist had grabbed his ankle. He turned around and saw a long tongue dragging him back to where he escaped. Sandshrew quickly slashed Lickitung's tongue causing it to yelp and to let go of Cameron. It then felt Sandshrew's sandy body and used its tongue to bind the poor mouse dragging it away.

"Oh no you don't!" yelled Cameron as he picked up a rock and threw it right in the middle of Lickitung's tongue. It yelped again causing Sandshrew to fly out of its grip and to land in Cameron's arms.

"Shrew!" said Sandshrew gratefully.

"Hey I couldn't let my bud get done in by tastebuds", smiled Cameron as he ran up to the light while holding Sandshrew. Sandshrew just made a soft moan from hearing Cameron's bad pun.

Lickitung had dragged its poor damaged tongue back in holding it in pain. Jessie leapt into the pit applying some bandages to her Pokemon's bruised tongue.

"You know Jess, you treat your Arbok and Lickitung better than you treat me!" snarled Meowth.

"That's because they're not royalty like you are you pampered puffball!" grumbled Jessie.

"How about if I cut back on my late night caviar snacks?" said Meowth.

"There's no time for this royal rambling!" said a panicked James, "We've gotta get that brat back before he reports back to those rebels!" He quickly ran over to the nearest intercom and made an announcement. "Attention all you lowly rockets", he shouted, "There's a boy about to escape from our palace. Surround every inch of the entire area and keep your eyes on the ground. That's where he'll most likely pop up!"

Cameron and Sandshrew finally emerged from the ground and into the animated outside world. When he turned around, he finally saw the outside of the palace. It was a huge pyramid with a Meowth shaped head on top. "That'll probably give me nightmares for years", thought Cameron, "If I don't wake up from this one!"

Just then, he heard some voices call out, "Hold it right there punk! There's no way you're escaping!" Cameron saw a couple of thugs dressed in black rocket uniforms holding guns running right towards him. Sandshrew quickly jumped in front of Cameron and sprayed sand out of its mouth and into the thugs' eyes causing them both to yell, drop their weapons, and rub their eyes."

"I'm blind! I'm blind!" screamed the first thug. "Now there goes my dreams of being a cartoonist!"

"Keep your eyes closed and wait for the tears to wash it all out!" said the second thug. And that's what they did unaware that their prisoners were long gone.

* * * * * *

Cameron and Sandshrew were running as fast as they can through the town. It looked a lot like Ash's hometown of Pallet, except there was no grass on the ground, no leaves on the trees and the sky was covered with smog. They suddenly came across a huge sign that said, WELCOME TO PALLET TOWN. Only the words Pallet Town were crossed out and replaced with Rocketville. Cameron continued reading it. "WELCOME TO ROCKETVILLE. WHERE NOBODY GETS IN AND NOBODY GETS OUT,  
SO YOU CAN'T REALLY BE WELCOMED HERE! HA HA HA!" Cameron and Sandshrew left the sign and ran down the hill. There they came across a huge glowing wall.

"This wall looks like someone could pass right through it", said Cameron as he was about to touch it. Sandshrew jumped right in front of him shouting, "SHREW! SANDSHREW! SHREW!"

"What's wrong?" asked Cameron, "Is there something bad about this wall?" Sandshrew picked up a nearby twig and threw it at the wall. The twig suddenly got fried and then it disappeared.

"That wall is pure electricity!" gasped Cameron, "Thank you Sandshrew. Now I see what that sign meant when it said nobody gets in or out. Which means were stuck here." Suddenly they heard some loud barking. An orange and white dog with black stripes was charging at the two about to put the bite on them.

"A Growlithe!" cried Cameron. Sandshrew quickly rolled itself into a ball and launched itself into the dog's mouth. Cameron covered his eyes fearing it would be the last of his new friend. He opened his eyes slowly and saw the Growlithe about to chomp down on the curled up rodent. But Sandshrew had a strong armored body causing all of Growlithe's teeth to break. It howled in pain as it spit Sandshrew out onto the ground. Cameron picked up the slobbery Sandshrew and got away from the wall at full speed.

* * * * * *

Cameron was running through the town still carrying Sandshrew trying to find some way out of this mess or at least someone who could help him. But then he came across a dead end. There were about six rocket thugs surrounding him looking very mean and tough.

"Time to go night-night kid!" said one of the thugs as he threw out a Pokeball. "Weepinbell, I choose you!" Out popped a plant that looked like a yellow bugle with leaves.

"Weepinbell, sleep powder now!" ordered the thug. Weepinbell leapt into the air and sprayed some strange kind of pollen all over Cameron and Sandshrew causing them both to become very sleepy and to fall down onto the ground. While the thugs were happily gloating at the two sleepy victims, a periscope popped out of a nearby manhole cover.

"What shall we do with 'em? Have 'em both put to sleep?" laughed one thug.

"News flash Einstein", said another. "What do they look like to you?"

"Let's just take 'em back to our most gracious majesties", said the leader.

"Not so fast you rocks in the head rockets!" called out a familiar girl's voice.

"It's those darn rebels!" shouted a thug.

"Vulpix, use your fire spin now!" commanded another familiar voice. A small red fox with six tails shot a tornado of fire around three of the thugs trapping them. A half-awake Cameron watched as the forms of the other thugs got beaten by a pack of familiar Pokemon shapes. He looked up some more and saw the forms of two very familiar figures. One had her hair done in a pigtall on the left side and the other had spiky hair.

"It's you two!" smiled Cameron as he went into a deep sleep.

TO BE CONTINUED

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Well, there's the first chapter. What do you think of it so far? Please let me know. :) 


	2. The Origin of Rocketville!

Hi everyone. Thank you all for reading my first chapter of my second fic and for encouraging me to continue writing it. Well, here it is.  
Chapter 2. Enjoy!

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey, chapter 2

The Origin of Rocketville!

Cameron suddenly woke up thinking he'd be back safe and sound in his room. Instead, he found something egg-shaped sitting on his chest. "Pi, pi?!" said the egg.

"Togepi?" asked Cameron as he found his glasses lying next to him and put them on. There it was. The mysterious egg Pokemon known as Togepi. It was smiling at Cameron while doing a funny dance on his chest.

"Now Togepi, please leave the poor boy alone", said the girl who picked it up and cradled it in her arms. "You don't know where he's been."

"Hey, are you all right kid?" asked the guy who was next to the girl.

"Yeah, I think so", replied Cameron who was looking at the faces of Misty and Brock. They almost looked exactly the same as they did in the TV show except that Brock looked 20 and Misty looked 17. And a very sexy looking 17 at that! ;)

"Just what do you think you were doing out there?" demanded Misty, "Going out in the open during Rocket curfew? Did you leave your brain at home with your parents?"

"Hey, go easy on him Misty", said Brock, "We've all been going through rough times these past five years. Badmouthing complete strangers isn't going to help us."

Cameron looked around at his surroundings. He was lying on an old mattress inside a giant sewer. There were people all over the place dressed in dirty clothes, eating canned foods, and warming themselves up by fire-lit trashpails.

"I see that our new friend is awake", said a pleasant voice. Cameron saw Mrs. Ketchum coming up towards him with a tray in her hands. "Hello dear, I'm Mrs. Ketchum. I take care of the sick and tormented citizens down here. I hope you like canned ham, canned potatoes, and canned peas", smiled Mrs. Ketchum who placed the tray of food on Cameron's lap. "I'm sorry it isn't much, but canned food is all we've got down here. It would be a really dark day if I lost my trusty can-  
opener. Hee hee!"

"Thank you Mrs. Ketchum", said Cameron as he dug into the meal. It may have been canned but Ash's mom knew how to work her magic on any type of food.

"My what a polite young man you are", smiled Mrs. Ketchum, "And what is your name?"

"I'm Cameron Fusterman" said Cameron who was still a little confused but at least his stomach was full.

"Nice to meet you Cameron", smiled Mrs. Ketchum, "These two dears found you asleep on the street about to be harmed by those awful Rockets. Their names are...."

"Misty and Brock?" replied Cameron.

"Yes we are", said a surprised Brock, "How did you know our names?"

"Isn't it obvious?" asked a proud Misty, "We're two of the leaders of the famous Pallet Rebellion. Even someone like him would know the marvelous magnificent me."

"Yes, you're definitely Misty", smiled Cameron remembering that cute little ego she sometimes has. "Say, where's Ash?"

"ASH??!!!" shouted Misty and Brock. Mrs. Ketchum fainted at the three lettered name she just heard.

"What do you know about Ash?!" shouted Misty grabbing Cameron by his gray sweatshirt. "Please tell us before my mind goes south for the winter! AGAIN!!!"

"Take it easy Misty", said Brock as he helped Mrs. Ketchum back on her feet.

"Yes Misty", said Mrs. Ketchum calmly, "You just can't shake someone around like that if you have a question. Please let me handle it." She approached Cameron slowly and placed her hands on his shoulders.

"Where's my little Ash!!!" she screamed hysterically as she shook Cameron around like a rag doll. "I'll do anything to know if my boy is safe and well!!! I'll give you anything! Candy, cookies, a million dollars, clean underwear! I just want my baby back here in my arms!!!" and she started crying.

"I'm sorry ma,am", said a shaken up Cameron, "But the last time I saw Ash was at the circus when Team Rocket kidnapped him thinking he was a Mr. Mime. That's all I can tell you. I'm sorry."

"I'm a terrible mother!" sobbed Mrs. Ketchum, "They were all planning on rescuing Ash but I told them not to worry. I told them all to come back to my place and have lunch and I was sure Ash would come back safe and sound, but he never did! I'M A TERRIBLE MOTHER!!!" Cameron felt sorry for Mrs. Ketchum. She really did care about Ash and now she was suffering mentally from his disappearance.

"No it wasn't your fault", said Brock, "It was mine. I never should've put him in that Mr. Mime suit to begin with and when Team Rocket tried to net him, I grabbed Stella but not Ash. I lost a good friend because of my obsession with pretty girls!

"Please don't blame yourself Brock", said a voice. Out of the shadows came Stella, the ringmaster of the Pokemon circus that was invaded. "It was my fault. Ash tried to speak up to save himself but I covered his mouth. If I had only treated my original Mr. Mime nicer in the first place, none of us would be in this mess!"

"Actually it's all Ash's fault!" shouted Misty, "That kid is always doing stupid things and getting himself into one mess after another. If he only refused to put on that Mr. Mime costume in the first place, he wouldn't have gotten himself kidnapped! No offense Mrs. Ketchum."

"None taken", said Mrs. Ketchum who had stopped crying. "To tell you the truth, I always figured that Ash didn't have all his screws tightened in. Maybe he wasn't mature enough for me to let him leave on his Pokemon journey."

"And when I whipped Ash with my trusty whip. He could've at least have the backbone to throw off the costume and walk away!", said Stella.

"At least Ash's disappearance brought the two of us together", said Brock as he took Stella in his arms. "That's probably the first and last thing he's ever done right!" and he and Stella kissed.

Cameron couldn't believe the things he was hearing. Ash had been missing for probably a long time and his friends and mother were still bad-mouthing him. "To tell you the truth, it was all your faults!" said Cameron in an angry voice. "Ash did everything he could to help you out with that circus and you just used him. And when dangerous criminals took him away, it was pretty thoughtless of you all to just go off and have lunch when Ash needed you the most! That just doesn't seem like friendship to me!"

"He's right!" cried Mrs. Ketchum again, "We're hurting Ash again even when he isn't here! I'm a terrible mother!"

"No, you're not a terrible mother", said Misty, "We're all just angry and frustrated at Ash's disappearance and for what Team Rocket has done to your town. We just never took them seriously until now."

"I'm sorry for blowing up at all of you like that", said Cameron, "It just made me angry at what I just saw happened in that circus tent yesterday."

"Say, that reminds me", said Stella, "How did you know all of that happened? Were you sneaking around in my circus? That's trespassing you know?!"

"And what do you mean you saw that yesterday?" asked Brock, "That incident happened 5 years ago."

"Five years?!!" gasped Cameron, "But I saw what happened on TV yesterday afternoon on my bed."

"I didn't know someone was broadcasting my circus live", said Stella.

"All right kid, we want the scoop and we want it now!" shouted Misty, "Exactly who are you and how do you know so much about all of us?"

"Well", said Cameron as he was slowly telling the story of how he got zapped by his pocket TV and ended up here with them.

"Now let me get this straight", said Misty as she wrote down some stuff on a pad. "You come from a world where we're all cartoon characters on a TV show and you somehow mysteriously got transported here into our world? Fell right into Meowth's bedroom, got locked in a dungeon, saved by a Sandshrew and ended up here with us?"

"Yes", said Cameron who couldn't believe the story he just told himself. Misty wasn't really taking notes. She was actually sketching Cameron in a straitjacket with googly-eyes, an arrow through his head, and the words NUT BOY underneath him.

"That story sound pretty farfetched", said Brock, "Are you sure those Rocket scientists didn't switch your brain with a Farfetch'd brain?"

"Honest, my story is true", said Cameron, "And I can prove it." He reached into his pocket, pulled out a little book and handed it to Brock. It was a mini-Pokemon anime album that featured scenes from the cartoon show.

"I don't believe this!" said a shocked Brock, "That's all of us and some of the adventures we've had with Ash! Look at this. There's the time we met up with the Squirtle Squad! I remember that adventure well."

"And look", said Misty as she took the book from Brock, "There's the time when we got onboard the St. Anne! I can't believe that we couldn't recognize those two girl prize givers as Jessie and James. I should've looked more clearly."

"And will you look at this", said Mrs. Ketchum as she took the book from Misty, "Here's the time when we were all vacationing in Porta Vista and I won first place in a beauty contest! Oh those wonderful memories!"

"And you look cute in a bathing suit Brock", said Stella winking at him. Brock just shyly blushed.

Cameron smiled for the beauty contest episode never made it to American TV, but at least the characters from this world got to experience it.

"I guess you really are telling the truth Cameron", said Brock, "So we're all actually cartoon characters in your world?"

"No it can't be!" cried Misty, "I'm too beautiful to be a cartoon character! I should be doing movies or at least sitcoms!"

Everyone started laughing, even Cameron. Then he started to look around the place. "Didn't I have a Sandshrew with me?" he asked.

"Yes, it's right here my boy", said another familiar voice. Out of the shadows came an old man wearing a dirty, torn lab coat holding a Pokeball in his hand.

"Professor Oak?" asked Cameron.

"You are correct Cameron", smiled the Professor. "I've healed your Sandshrew and given him his own Pokeball. Here you are", he said as he gave the ball to Cameron. Cameron opened it up and out popped his friend.

"Sandshrew!" called out Sandshrew as he jumped onto Cameron and started licking his face. "How'ya doing Sandshrew", smiled Cameron. "You're looking really better, all nice and sandy. Say, how about I call you Sandy?"

"Shrew!" replied Sandy who really approved of his new name.

"So you're from another world?" said Prof Oak as he took out a little light and started shining it in Cameron's ears, mouth, and nostrils. "Very interesting!"

"Professor", asked Brock, "Do you have any idea how Cameron ended up in our world?"

"I believe I might have a theory", said Prof. Oak, "Come with me everyone."

* * * * * *

Prof. Oak had led the group into another part of the sewer. It was full of lab equipment, machines, and empty Pokeballs. He pointed to a strange looking device that looked like a giant white cone with an antenna on top.

"This here is a matter teleporter I've been working on in secret", said Prof. Oak, "I have this theory that Ash is still alive out there somewhere and this device will teleport him to wherever Team Rocket left him and bring him back to us."

"You mean you've devised a way to bring back my Ash?!" cried Mrs. Ketchum with hope in her eyes.

"I didn't tell you earlier because I didn't want to get your hopes up", explained Prof. Oak. "I typed in the name, age, and description of Ash hoping it will locate where Ash is and begin the teleportation. But instead, it brought you here Cameron.

"Wow!" said Cameron, "I thought the reason I got here was the shock from when I put the batteries from my Pokemon game into my pocket TV when I was watching the Pokemon show."

"Interesting theory, but I don't really think so", said Prof. Oak. "I typed in Ash's name, hair and eye colors, and the age he would be today. But you Cameron don't seem to fit any of that subscription. Very puzzling." Prof. Oak looked at the computer screen on his teleporter and found a whole bunch of letters and numbers all jumbled together. "What the...." Asked the Professor as went to the other side of the teleporter. "So that's it, eh?" he said disappointedly.

"What's wrong Professor?" asked Misty, "Have you found out why your machine didn't work?"

"Yes you might say there were a few quirks", said Prof. Oak, "Make that a few quacks!" and he held up a funny looking duck in front of Misty.

"PSYDUCK?!!!" shouted Misty.

"Yes", sighed Prof. Oak, "Your Psyduck seemed to be playing with the keys before I activated the teleporter. The machine got so confused trying to read Psyduck's mess that it brought Cameron into our world sending him crashing through Team Rocket's palace."

"You dumb duck!!!" screamed Misty as she shook Psyduck around like crazy. "It's bad enough that you keep ruining my life. Do you have to ruin Ash's and this poor kid's life too? I really thought leaving you down here while I battle up there would make things better. But no!!! You always have to find some way to ruin it for me and all of us!!"

"Psy-yai-yai!" said a shaken Psyduck.

"Hey, go easy on him Misty", said Brock taking the poor duck away from her.

"Yes", said Mrs. Ketchum taking Psyduck in her arms, "Let me mangle this dumb duck! He prevented me from getting back my son!!!" and she started shaking Psyduck even harder than Misty did. Psyduck's headache suddenly got even worse causing his eyes to glow a scary blue color.

"Uh oh", thought Cameron as he grabbed Sandy and quickly hid behind a nearby table for he knew about Psyduck's powerful confusion attacks when his headache is increased. Everyone who was near Psyduck started to fly around in the air bouncing off the walls. Cameron quickly helped everyone up and patted the poor Pysduck who didn't look so happy.

When everyone was calm, Mrs. Ketchum slowly spoke up. "Professor Oak", she said, "Can you please reactivate your machine so you can bring back my son?"

"I'm afraid I can't", said Prof. Oak sadly, "I'm sorry."

"You can't?!!!" asked Mrs. Ketchum calmly while grabbing Prof. Oak by the labcoat with an angry look on her face.

"And I'll show you why", said Prof. Oak as he approached the teleporter, opened up a small door, and pulled out a small rock.

"That looks like a piece from the Moonstone", said Brock.

"It is", said Prof. Oak, "This is what powers up the teleporter. Unfortunately it can only be used once. I'll need two more Moonstone chunks if we want to get Ash back and to send Cameron back to his own world."

"But the original Moonstone is back at Mt. Moon", said Misty, "And there's no way we can get it because of that stupid electric wall!"

"Then there's no hope for any of us!" sobbed a depressed Mrs. Ketchum.

"Where did that huge wall come from?" asked Cameron.

"You should know, you seem to watch us all the time", said Misty.

"Yes", smiled Mrs. Ketchum who grabbed Cameron's shoulders. "You can tell us what Team Rocket did with Ash and how we can get him back and free our town from those horrible Rockets. Please tell us!"

"I... I don't know", said Cameron, "The last Pokemon show I saw was when Team Rocket kidnapped Ash and left the circus. Then I suddenly ended up here."

"I knew it had to be too good to be true!" wailed Mrs. Ketchum. "I'm being punished for being a terrible mother!!!"

"I'm sorry Mrs. Ketchum", said Cameron, "I wish I knew how to help all of you. I don't even know how Team Rocket was able to do all of this damage."

"It's a long sad story", said Brock. "Five years ago after having lunch with Mrs. Ketchum. Misty, Stella, Pikachu and I went back to the circus thinking Ash would be back any minute now. Instead Jessie, James, Meowth, and hordes of Rocket thugs arrived with tanks, motorcycles, and armored cars. They invaded Stella's circus and nabbed all of her Pokemon, even her Mr. Mime."

"I miss my mime!" cried Stella, "I've failed to save him along with all my other Pokemon. This was the only one I could save!" She opened up a Pokeball and released a big clump of vines wearing shoes.

"A Tangela." said Cameron.

"That was a really rough time for her", said Brock, "Little Pikachu tried his best to shock away those baddies, but the terrible trio managed to nab him with a rubber net. Once all the Pokemon were seized, Team Rocket blasted off and we never saw Pikachu or any of Stella's Pokemon again." Cameron wondered why he didn't see Pikachu down here.

"Just then things went from worse to tragic", said Misty, "We were all going to start a rescue party and track down those Rockets until a huge electric wall suddenly appeared circling around Pallet Town trapping all of us in. Then hundreds of Rockets stormed the town seizing all the citizens, taking away their Pokemon and bringing them into the center of the town. That ugly Meowth shaped balloon landed in the center of the town and out popped Jessie, James, and Meowth. They were wearing purple robes and paper crowns like the ones you find at fast food restaurants!"

START OF FLASHBACK:

Jessie: "Prepare for trouble!"  
James: "And make it double!"  
Jessie: "To protect the world from devastation!"  
James: "To unite all peoples within our nation!"  
Jessie: "To denounce the evils of truth and love!"  
James: "To extend our reach to the stars above!"  
Jessie: "Queen Jessie!"  
James: "King James!"  
Jessie: "Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"  
James: "Surrender now or prepare to fight!"  
Meowth: "Royal Meowth, that's right!"

"Attention all you lucky people of this town", smiled Jessie, "The all powerful and sometimes merciless Team Rocket has chosen your humble little town to be our kingdom!"

"Yes", smiled James, "Tomorrow we'll be holding classes at the nearby college on how to say your new pledge of allegiance and how to bow down as low as you can to us."

"You have no right to take over Pallet Town like this!" shouted a citizen. "We're all democrats here!"

"Democrats?" asked Meowth, "What kind of Pokemon is a democrat? And where can we steal one?" Jessie just pulled Meowth's crown over his mouth to keep him quiet.

"As I was saying", continued Jessie, "You will all do as we say, pay whatever taxes we just feel like coming up with, and treat us like royalty!"

"And if you don't like it, you can just leave", said James, "But don't let the electric wall kill you along the way!"

"One more thing", said Meowth who just had his crown straightened up, "We all think Pallet Town is a wussy name for a kingdom. I hear by declare that this town will be now called Meowthland!"

"Meowthland?!" said Jessie, "We were going to name this place Jessiopolis!" she growled as she grabbed Meowth by the mouth.

"I think Jamestown would sound nicer", said James.

"That name is copyrighted you dope!" growled Meowth.

"Like any lawyers are gonna bust through that wall and slap us with lawsuits", sneered James.

Jessie, James, and Meowth started arguing and then broke into a fight cloud while all the frightened and confused citizens watched them duking it out making bets on the cute red head. A few minutes later, the fight cloud dissolved and it showed Team Rocket covered with bandages.

"After a peaceful discussion", said Jessie, "We've all decided that this town will now be known as Rocketville. Remember that name, live by it, and you'll all be living peaceful and very semi-healthy lives!"

"What have you done with my little Ash you horrible Rockets?!!" shouted Mrs. Ketchum.

"Show some respect for our beloved monarchs you wacko!" shouted a thug who was about to strangle her until Brock and Misty got in his way.

"Leave the poor woman alone Bruiser", said James. "We're going to be merciful just this once since this is our first day as monarchs."

"So you're the twerp's mother?" smiled Jessie as she looked over Mrs. Ketchum. "Your little boy sure has given us a hard time throughout our villainy. I wish we could say what happened to him but I have a feeling that you're never gonna see him again or anyone else from the outside world for that matter!"

"But we will give you this so you can always remember your little Ashie-Poo", said Meowth, "While you're slaving away for us! HA HA HA HA!" and he flung something at Mrs. Ketchum. It was Ash's Pokemon league expo-hat.

"Oh Ash!" sobbed Mrs. Ketchum, "What have I done to you?! And to everyone else I know and love?!"

END OF FLASHBACK:

"And that's how I lost my son, my town, and my entire life!" cried Mrs. Ketchum.

"Gee", said Cameron, "Usually in the cartoon when somethng bad happens, they break it up into 2 or 3 parts, but five years? That's like five seasons!"

"And you wouldn't believe the suffering we all went through those long 5 years", moaned Misty, "On the first day of Rocketville, the trio ordered all us citizens to build that ugly Meowth shaped palace like we were Egyptian slaves. The back-breaking labor wasn't so bad, but seeing those 3 getting carried around wearing those lame Pharaoh hats was complete eye murder!"

"Once their palace was finished", continued Brock, "They sent all the citizens back to their regular jobs while increasing taxes almost every day. If you couldn't pay them, they take away your house and replace it with a smog-spewing factory! So far, they've built 30 factories in the past year!"

"Is that why almost everyone is living in the sewers?" asked Cameron.

"Yes and it seems to be getting crowded almost every tax day", said Prof. Oak, "And you won't believe what those Rockets have done to our schools and our TV shows! This is what our poor children are learning!" and he turned on a nearby black and white TV and showed Cameron.

"It's time for Rocket Room", said a lady teacher wearing a black rocket uniform with a huge scary smile on her face who was surrounded by little kids that were also dressed in smaller versions of the uniform. "I'm you're teacher Miss. Scary and this is our little friend Doo-  
Beedrill!" In flew a giant bee with two huge needles on its hands ready to do some serious stinging.

"Today were going to recite the Rocket alphabet", smiled Mrs. Scary,  
"Doo-Beedrill loves the alphabet. In fact, he really hates it if you mess it up. Now let's all sing together so that Doo-Beedrill won't have to make Swiss cheese out of you!"

"Bzzzzzzz!" said the Beedrill waiting to hear some singing. The kids all nervously started singing. "R R R R R R R. R R R R R R R.  
R R R R R R. R R R R R and R. Now we know the letter R. It's the only one worth knowing cause it's best by far!"

"I can't watch this!" cried Cameron, "Please turn it off!" and that's what the Professor did.

"I'll never think badly of Barney or the Teletubbies again after that!" said Cameron.

"We just couldn't take all this suffering", said Stella, "That's when we decided to start up this underground rebellion hoping one day we can find a way to rid ourselves of those rotten Rockets!"

"So you're the rebels Meowth was talking about", said Cameron.

"That's correct son", said Prof. Oak, "The rebellion consists of me, Misty, Brock, Mrs. Ketchum, Stella, her circus crew, my grandson Gary,  
and many others."

"Yo! Gramps!" called out a funny voice. Cameron recognized that weird sounding voice. It was Prof. Oak's obnoxious grandson Gary. He looked like he was sixteen and his cheerleading squad was standing right behind them looking pretty disgruntled.

"What is is Gary?" asked the Professor.

"We gotta move!" said Gary who was sounding really serious. "Those Rockets are terrorizing a family who lives in a blue house on Elm Street!"

"That sounds like the home of my good friend Mrs. Johnston!" cried Mrs. Ketchum, "We have to save her and her kids!"

"Right, let's move out!" shouted Brock as he, Misty, Stella and Gary left Prof. Oak's lab.

"Gary, rah", said his unenthusiastic cheerleaders.

Prof. Oak opened up a Pokeball and out popped a Magnemite with a periscope attached to it. "Head over to Elm Street and show us everything that's going on with the Rockets at the blue house", ordered the Professor. And the Magnemite left the lab while Prof. Oak approached a huge monitor and turned it on. He, Cameron, Mrs. Ketchum, Sandy, and the cheerleaders watched the screen as the Magnemite traveled through the dark and dirty sewers and raised its periscope through an open manhole cover. There they saw a blue house where two Rocket thugs were threatening a poor woman and her two little kids.

"We're very disappointed in you ma'am", said the first thug, "You know our beloved rulers just wants a little tax money to keep their luxurious palace running. And you have the rudeness to tell us that you're broke?!"

"Please sir", pleaded Mrs. Johnston, "I don't even have any money to feed my poor children! Can't you show a little mercy for the poor?"

"Awwww", said the second thug who looked into the eyes of the youngest daughter and patted her head. "I'll tell you what we'll do. You let us tear down your house and build a fertilizer factory here and we'll let your kids stick their feet into the leftovers. All those minerals in fertilizer must be better than deadly candy. HA HA HA HA!"

"You can't take away our house you big dumb jerks!" shouted the oldest son as he sprayed his mustard bottle at the thugs.

"Billy no!" shouted Mrs. Johnston.

"Ooooh, you've made us very happy!" smiled the first thug, "Now we get to punish all of you for disrespecting Team Rocket! Go Koffing!" He shouted as he released a floating purple ball with a clueless looking face on it.

"Go Charmeleon!" said the second thug as he released a mean looking orange lizard with a flame on its tail.

"Quick children, come inside!" shouted Mrs. Johnston as she pushed her kids in and slammed the door.

"Koffing, seal up all the doors and windows with your sludge!" commanded the first thug.

"Koffing!" said the Koffing as it floated around the house spitting out sludge all over every exit of the nice clean house.

"Charmeleon! Make that discourteous family feel the burn!" said the second thug.

"Char!" said the Charmeleon as it breathed fire on the top of the roof. The Johnstons could smell the fire burning its way in and they closed their eyes waiting for it to be all over.

"Oh those poor Johnstons!" cried Mrs. Ketchum and the cheerleaders at the same time.

"I can't believe those Rockets would stoop to something like this!" thought Cameron who just wanted to squirt HOT mustard on those thugs.

Just then, a Staryu and a Vaporeon flew into the air and sprayed water onto the fire. "What the..." shouted the thugs as they saw Gary, Misty, Brock, Stella and the three girls from her circus standing right in front of them. Gary had his Nidoking, Arcanine, Kingler, Dodrio, Alakazam, and Venusaur by his side. Misty had her Staryu and Seaking, Brock had his Vulpix, Onix, Graveler, and Golbat, Stella had her Tangela and her circus crew had their Vaporeon, Jolteon, and Flareon with them.

"It's those stinkin' rebels!" growled the thugs.

"That's Mr. Stinkin' Rebels to you losers!" said Gary proudly.

"And don't forget Mrs. Stinkin' rebels too", said Misty, "No wait, I don't like the sound of that."

"When will you guys learn that when you mess with innocent citizens, you'll have to deal with the forces of good!" said Brock.

"What are you guys, the Superfriends?" said the first thug, "Let's whoop these rebels along with their dumb Pokemon!" He quickly sent out his Kofffing to attack them along with his Poliwrath, Rhyhorn, Zubat, Magneton, and Ivysaur. The second thug also sent out his Charmeleon along with his Mankey, Raticate, Nidoqueen, Drowzee, and Scyther.

"Long live the Pallet Rebellion!" shouted the good guys as they sent their Pokemon to fight the Rocket's ones. It was the most spectacular Pokemon battle Cameron had ever witnessed. Vulpix was frying Ivysaur, Staryu was putting out Charmeleon's fire, Jolteon was putting the jolts on Scyther, and Alakazam was completely psyching out Zubat.

While the battle raged on, Stella ordered her Tangela to cut down the door with its many vines freeing the Johnstons. Once the family was outside, Stella gave the thumbs-up signal to Brock. "Okay Golbat", said Brock, "Use your haze attack now!" Golbat flew high up in the air and sprayed a thick fog around everyone. The thugs couldn't see a thing and neither could their Pokemon and they ended up battling each other. Once the fog had cleared up, the thugs found the rebels and their Pokemon gone along with the Johnstons. All they found were their own Pokemon lying on the street all battered and beaten.

"Our highnesses ain't gonna like this", sighed the first thug, "What shall we do?"

"I really can't think on an empty stomach right now", said the second thug as he took a sausage out of his coat and smeared it on his mustard coated friend.

* * * * * *

A few minutes later, the rebels returned to Prof. Oak's lab feeling a little proud of their latest victory.

"Gary, rah", said the gloomy cheerleaders again.

"Congratulations on another great citizen rescue", said Prof. Oak.

"It was no problem", said Brock, "The Johnstons are out with the others. They're a little shaken up but they're not physically hurt."

"I'd better go calm them down and bring them some food", said Mrs. Ketchum as she left the lab.

"That was the most awesome Pokemon battle I've ever seen!" said Cameron.

"It was only just a typical day in this heck-hole we call Rocketville", sighed Misty.

"I still thought it was excellent!" said Cameron. "And it looks like some of your Pokemon had evolved."

"That's right", said Brock, "My Geodude and Zubat have been through many years of tough battles so eventually they would evolve into Graveler and Golbat."

"And my Goldeen just evolved into a Seaking about a month ago", said Misty. "Its been a very strong and loyal fighter for me all these years."

"Why hasn't your Psyduck evolved?" asked Cameron as he saw the duck licking the bottoms of his webbed feet.

"Because he's hardly ever won any battles!" groaned Misty studying the bad habits of a Psyduck.

"And you Gary were just great", said Cameron, "I've always wondered what kind of Pokemon you carried and now I believe that Bulbasaur was your first Pokemon now that I've seen that Venusaur of yours."

"Just who exactly is this loser?" asked Gary. Cameron suddenly frowned. "He mistreats all people the same way he mistreats Ash!" thought Cameron.

"Really Gary", said Prof. Oak, "I wish you wouldn't call every poor citizen we bring down here a loser."

"Well that's what they are", shouted an angry Gary, "We rebels are the ones that keep winning these pointless battles while we defend these poor weak losers who can't even fight for themselves. This is no life for a great and fabulous Pokemon master like me!"

"Hey, if these citizens had their own Pokemon, they could fight back too!", shouted Cameron, "If you didn't have any of your Pokemon fighting your battles for you, then you'd be as helpless as these poor citizens!"

Gary just said nothing. He just spit on the ground and stormed out of his grandpa's lab while his cheerleading squad followed him without even cheering him off.

"You have to excuse my grandson", said Prof. Oak, "He's just frustrated that he can't leave this town and continue his dream to compete in the Pokemon League. He doesn't mean to act this way."

"Actually he does", Misty whispered to Cameron.

"That evil electric wall has prevented many dreams from coming true", said Stella, "No one can do a thing about it. Anyone who even sets a finger on that deathwall becomes a southern fried skeleton in two seconds."

"I've heard that ground Pokemon like Sandy are immune to electricity", said Cameron, "Have you tried sending either Graveler or Onix to go through the wall to get help?"

"Sure my rock Pokemon could probably go through the wall", said Brock, "But unfortunately I can't. Pokemon need their trainers to go along with them or else some strangers might try to catch them thinking they're wild."

"And once they're caught in a stranger's Pokeball", continued Prof. Oak, "They automatically get a new trainer with no memory of their old trainer."

"Hmmmm", thought Cameron, "Have you ever tried doing this?" They all gathered around Cameron and listened to his idea.

"Why that's so crazy it just might work!" said Brock.

"Why didn't I think of that?" said Misty.

"My friends", said Prof. Oak with hope in his eyes. "If Cameron's idea succeeds, we just might get our first step in freeing Pallet Town along with finding Ash!"

TO BE CONTINUED

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Just what is Cameron's plan on escaping from the iron fists and paws of Team Rocket's kingdom? Stay tuned for chapter 3 to find out.


	3. First Roll To Freedom

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey, chapter 3

First Roll to Freedom

The next morning, Prof Oak led his group of rebels along with Cameron to the very end of the sewers. "Once you all step through that manhole up there", explained the Professor, "You'll be facing the very edge of the electric wall. If Cameron's plan succeeds, you'll be on your way to bring back help and maybe even find Ash."

"And if Cameron's plan doesn't succeed", smiled Misty, "We'll all have plenty of time in the afterlife to blame him!" Cameron looked nervously at Misty hoping they'd all make it through alive.

"Has everyone got everything they need?" asked Mrs. Ketchum.

"We sure have Mrs. Ketchum", said Brock, Misty, and Stella all together as they showed her their backpacks along with their Pokeballs.

"Cameron, I've made this backpack especially for you", smiled Mrs. Ketchum as she handed him a bright red backpack full of food, a sleeping bag, healing potions, bandages, hot chocolate, and of course clean you-know-whats ;) "I also want you to take this", said Mrs. Ketchum as she showed Cameron something and placed it on his head.

"Ash's Pokemon League expo-hat!" said Cameron, "But are you sure you want me to wear this?"

"Yes Cameron", smiled Mrs. Ketchum, "That hat always seemed to bring Ash luck on his travels and maybe it will do the same for you. And if you do find my Ash, please give it back to him and tell him that his mother misses him and wants him to come home. Will you?"

"You can be sure I will Mrs. Ketchum", smiled Cameron. Mrs. Ketchum gave him a warm motherly hug thanking him.

"Pi?!" asked Togepi who was in Misty's arms.

"No Togepi", said Misty, "This trip is too dangerous for you. I want you to stay here with Mrs. Ketchum and I promise I'll return to you as soon as I can."

"Togepi!" cried Togepi as it kissed Misty. Misty who was full of motherly tears kissed Togepi on the cheek and handed it to Mrs. Ketchum.

"Don't worry Misty", said Mrs. Ketchum, "I'll try to be a better mother to this one."

"Oh yes, Misty", said Prof. Oak, "I want you to take this with you." He handed her a Pokeball.

"Is this a new and powerful Pokemon just for me?" asked Misty excitedly.

"Not exactly", said the Professor. The ball opened by itself and out popped a Pokemon.

"PSYDUCK?!!!" shouted Misty surprised and annoyed.

"I have a feeling you're going to need more than the two Pokemon you already have for this trip", said Prof Oak, 'Besides, I want that dimwit duck out of my lab for good!' he thought to himself.

"Oh, and Cameron", the Professor continued as he handed Cameron some items. "Here's your Pokedex which will identify any Pokemon you encounter and it will also serve as your I.D. And here's a set of Pokeballs so you can catch some Pokemon. But I'm afraid you won't be able to catch any more than six, because I don't have my Pokemon transporter here with me."

"That's okay Professor", smiled Cameron, "Just going on an actual Pokemon journey is good enough for me!"

"Why do they get to go while I have to be stuck here?!" complained Gary, "I've got the toughest Pokemon of all of us put together!"

"Which is why I feel you should stay here Gary", said Prof. Oak, "We need your extra strong Pokemon to protect the citizens. And besides, with Misty and Brock gone I figured that you'd be the perfect one to lead the Pallet Rebellion, but if you don't think you can handle the responsibility, Then you can just go on ahead with them."

"Are you kidding?!" asked Gary, "You should've made me the leader in the first place! As usual, I'll make the daring sacrifice and stay here and protect my people!"

"Gary, he's now our leader. Whoop-dee-doo!" said his emotionless cheerleading squad.

"Are you sure you girls can handle the rebellion without the three of us?" Stella asked her circus staff.

"Don't worry about us Stella", said the first girl, "We'll all be fine, you just concentrate on freeing us all."

"And if a battle ever does get bad for us", said the second girl, "We can always escape by using my Vaporeon's mist attacks."

"I just hope we can survive the super-ego of our new leader", thought the third girl who was watching Gary combing his red hair proudly.

"Good luck everyone", said Prof. Oak, Mrs. Ketchum, and everyone else who was watching Cameron, Misty, Brock, and Stella climb the ladder that led to the surface. "Pi pi. Mommy!" said a tear filled Togepi. Misty suddenly grew some tears too. "I love you Togepi!" she smiled as she blew it a kiss and left the sewers.

* * * * * *

The four of them found themselves on top of a grassy hill and down below the hill was the infamous electric wall. "Perfect", said Brock, "There's not a guard in sight!" They were about to go down the hill until they saw a giant six-foot orange dog marching back and forth near the wall. They all went back up and hid behind the hill just before the dog turned its head.

"That was an Arcanine", said Cameron, "The evolved form of Growlithe."

"I forgot! They always have those rotten mutts guarding the wall!" grumbled Misty.

"Leave this to me", smiled Stella as she reached into her backpack and pulled out a huge rubber bone. "I've been saving this in case I find a Growlithe or Arcanine to add to my circus, but now hard times calls for something different."

"But it still might attack us even if you do give it the bone", said Cameron.

"Not if I coat it with Tangela's sleep powder", smiled Stella as she took out a bottle of powder and sprinkled it all over the bone.

Arcanine looked up and saw a huge bone flying its way. It leapt into the air and caught the bone and started gnawing on it like crazy. A few seconds later the Arcanine was on its back snoozing while the mangled up bone was stuck between its teeth.

"Nice job Stella", winked Brock.

"Thanks", said Stella blushing.

"Now's the time to put Cameron's plan into action", said Brock as he took out a Pokeball. "Go Onix!" he shouted as the giant rock-skinned python appeared right in front of them.

"Maybe I shouldntv'e suggested this plan", thought Cameron as he nervously stared at the gigantic snake remembering that he got wrapped up by an Arbok the other day.

"Onix, we need you to protect us with your rocky coils so we can pass through that electric wall. Are you up to it?" Onix roared and nodded its head and then wrapped up the four humans until no parts of their bodies were showing. Then Onix rolled itself down the hill heading closer and closer to the wall.

* * * * * *

"Hey guys", said Meowth as he was looking through his binoculars on the royal observatory, "Something's going on by the north side of our wall!" Jessie and James took out their binoculars and looked too.

"What in the world is that thing?!" asked James.

"It looks like an Onix all coiled up", said Jessie, "Just what is it doing?"

"I remember one of those brats had an Onix with him", said Meowth, "Do you think it's trying to bust out of our happy little kingdom?!"

"If it actually does escape, we have nothing to worry about", smiled Jessie, "After all, those rebels won't be able to come with it. And if Onix does escape and never return, those poor little rebels won't have their big and powerful snake to protect them!"

* * * * * *

The trio in the palace watched as Onix rolled even closer to the wall while the Pallet Rebellion watched too through Prof. Oak's monitor. Soon Onix had completely passed through the electric wall completely unharmed. It loosened up its coils and out crawled Cameron, Misty, Brock, and Stella who all fell down onto the grass feeling completely dizzy but unharmed as well.

"No! This can't be happening!" shouted Jessie.

"It's against the law for people to leave Rocketville!" shouted James, "At least not alive!"

"I told you it was a mistake to make dumb mutts guard that wall!" grumbled Meowth, "We cats have more brain power!"

"All right, then you go and guard it!" shouted Jessie as she picked up Meowth and threw him out of the observatory and right into the lap of the sleeping Arcanine waking it up.

"Uh you're just having a nightmare", said Meowth nervously, "Just go back to sleep and I'll soon be gone." And sure enough Meowth was gone for the angry Arcanine was chasing him throughout the town.

* * * * * *

"THEY MADE IT!!!" shouted the Professor happily, "THEY'RE OUTSIDE!!!" Everyone in the sewers started cheering happily with glee. Even Gary's cheerleading squad was cheering happily like they used to do in the old days. Even Gary couldn't help but crack a smile of hope.

Mrs. Ketchum was cheering while tossing Togepi up in the air and catching it. "I believe your mommy is going to be just fine", smiled Mrs. Ketchum, "And I believe this mommy right here is too!"

"TOGEPI!!!" cried the egg happily.

* * * * * *

"It's a miracle!" screamed Misty happily while dancing around, "We're free!!! We're actually on the other side of the wall! There are blue skies above us and green grass below us! I almost forgotten what that stuff is like!"

"Way to go Onix!" said Brock as he patted his Pokemon on the head proudly. "And to you too Cameron for coming up with that brilliant idea!"

"It was nothing", smiled Cameron while blushing.

"Nothing?!" asked Stella, "You've gotten some of us our freedom back. Now we have a chance to help the others as well."

"So who are we going to get to help us?" asked Cameron.

"We'll just find ourselves a nearby Officer Jenny", said Misty, "Then she can call up all her sisters and cousins and we'll have a whole police force as a cavalry!"

"And along the way we can head over to Mt. Moon and collect two pieces of the Moonstone so we can bring Ash back and send you back home Cameron", said Brock, "I hope you don't mind traveling with us until that time comes."

"I think it might be fun", said Cameron excitedly, "And maybe along the way I can try my luck at catching some real live Pokemon! I've already got one so far." He opened up his Pokeball and out popped Sandy.

"What do you say Sandy?" asked Cameron, "Are you up to catching me some Pokemon?"

"Shrew!" replied Sandy who was eager to please his new master.

"Okay then, let's go everyone!" said Cameron as he and Sandy ran off into the horizon while the others tried to catch up with him.

"It's just like being with Ash!" smiled Brock.

"Don't remind me", sighed Misty who secretly missed those Ash's adventures days.

* * * * * *

Jessie, James, and Meowth were all pacing around their throne room thinking about the situation. Meowth wasn't actually walking. He was limping from that unfortunate Arcanine attack.

"I don't see what the big deal is", said Meowth, "So four measly humans got out. We'll probably never have to see them again and we still have over a hundred subjects here to kick around."

"It's not the number, it's the principle of it all!" shouted James. "It makes us Rockets look bad if any of those peasants leave Rocketville without permission!"

"And if they got out, they could find a way to get back in!" shouted Jessie, "And bring in a whole army that'll end our ruling fun!"

"You think they're able to do it?" asked Meowth.

"If that little twerp can escape our dungeon and then escape through the wall with three others, who knows what else he's capable of!" said Jessie.

"Just when we think we've seen the last of one twerp another one takes his place!" moaned James. "It's like they spore!"

"There's only one thing to do!" said Jessie as she walked over to a huge door, put a card key through a slot next to it and the door opened. There they saw their old balloon that had been gathering dust for quite a while. "I'll open up a portal through the wall that's big enough for the balloon to fly through. That way you two can retrieve those rebels either dead or alive. Doesn't that sound like fun?"

"The two of us?" asked Meowth, "Ain't you coming with us?"

"No, someone has to stay here and boss around this kingdom", smiled Jessie, "And I guess I'll have to make the supreme sacrifice and stay behind." And she sat down on her throne and stuffed caviar and bon-bons in her mouth.

"But we couldn't even defeat those twerps when it was all three of us", whined James, "Do you possibly think that only two of us would make things better?"

"Relax James", smiled Jessie, "I've got someone in mind who'll be joining you two on your mission." She pushed a button on her throne and a door opened. Out came a black whirling tornado heading directly at James and Meowth sucking them both in. They soon found themselves tied up in knots and then saw the tornado slow down. It was a girl who looked about 14. She had long shiny black hair that was tied up in a braid, mean looking red eyes, and she was wearing a black ninja's outfit with an R on her chest and her nose and mouth were covered up with a black ninja's mask.

"James, Meowth", smiled Jessie, "I'd like you to meet Reiko, our new intern. Not only can she whip up a good pot of java, she can also whip our enemies into a bloody pulp with her awesome ninja skills!"

"Pleased to meet you", said Meowth while huge hearts formed in his eyes and was about to kiss her hand. Reiko only replied by grabbing his lips and tying them up in a cute little bow.

"Like the tiny innocent Caterpie that foolishly crawls into an open Pidgey's beak, you should never give any sort of affection to a probable enemy!" said Reiko in a pretty Japanese accented voice.

"But we're not your enemies", said James, "Jessie is our friend and your friend too so that makes us all friends!" he said while hearts formed in his eyes as well. Reiko just grabbed James by the eyelids and flung him on his back.

"Jessie, did you see what she did to us?!" cried James, "The very two kings of Rocketville?"

"Yes I did", smiled Jessie, "If she can do that much damage to royalty, she definitely will do something worse to those runaway rebels. Reiko my dear, I'm putting you in charge of these two. Are you sure you can handle them?"

"Like the gum cutting braces that keeps crooked rebel teeth in line, You can be sure that I will keep these two males straight Your Majesty!" said Reiko as she grabbed James by the collar and Meowth by the tail and headed over to the balloon.

"This shouldn't happen to a king!", whined James.

"MGGMLPHLBRG", replied Meowth trying to get his lips untied.

* * * * * *

It was nighttime and our heroes had set up camp in a quiet spot in the forest. They were all roasting hot dogs and marshmallows over an open fire thanks to Vulpix's ember attack. Cameron smiled as he held a stick with a plump hot dog on it to Sandy who was nibbling it happily.

"It sure is great to see an unsmogged stary night again", sighed Stella, "And look Brock, there are all my favorite constellations. There's Leo the Persian, Pisces the Magikarp, Cancer the Krabby, and Tauros the Tauros!" Cameron was a little confused but then remembered that he was in the Pokemon world now.

"If I could, I'd catch every one of those stars in a Pokeball and train them to form a constellation of you my lovely Stellar Stella!" smiled Brock as he put an arm around his smiling love.

"Oh please!" said Misty as she turned around and put her finger in her mouth while quietly gagging.

Cameron smiled too and then looked into his jeans' pocket. He pulled out what looked like a red Gameboy and turned it on.

"I am Dexeena", said the Pokedex in a girl's voice, "I am the official Pokedex of Cameron Fusterman, age 13, birthplace Trenton New Jersey. I was given to him by Professor Oak. I provide Cameron with information on all types of Pokemon and serve as his I.D. If lost or stolen, I cannot be replaced."

"Trenton?" asked Misty, "What kind of Pokemon do you have in Trenton?"

"Actually we don't have any Pokemon in Trenton", said Cameron, "Or any kind in my world."

"A world without Pokemon?" gasped Brock, "You mean there are only humans in your world?"

"Oh no, we do have these creatures called animals", said Cameron.

"An-nuh-mulz?" asked Misty, "That's a funny word."

"The only Pokemon I've seen in Trenton were the toy ones they gave out at Burger King a month ago" said Cameron. "Gee, it's been two days since I left my room and ended up here. I'm starting to miss Trenton already!"

"And I bet you miss your mom and dad too", said Misty concerned.

"Actually all I have is a dad", replied Cameron, "My mom died when I was two. I bet he's calling up every police station in New Jersey looking for me!" said Cameron wiping the tears through his glasses. Sandy saw the sad look on his master's face and hugged his leg saying a comforting, "Shrew."

"I know what you're going through kid", said Brock, "I haven't seen my Dad or my brothers and sisters for years. They're probably worried sick about me too!" Stella patted Brock's arm comforting him as well.

"It's not likely, but I bet my stuck-up sisters are worried about me too!" groaned Misty. She suddenly felt something wet kissing the back of her arm.

"PSYDUCK?!!" shouted Misty as she turned around and saw the clueless looking duck smiling at her. She was about to yell at him, but instead picked him up and said, "At least I know you'll miss me if I'm ever gone", she smiled. "Psy", said the happy duck.

"And I haven't seen my Mr. Mime in years", sighed Stella, "I miss him terribly."

"Don't worry Stella", said Brock while wiping the tears from her eyes, "As long as we all stick together, we'll get through this rough time and be reunited with our loved ones soon! I promise!"

Cameron smiled at the hope that suddenly surrounded the campsite. He then noticed Sandy trying to pull some kind of vegetable out of the ground. "You're still hungry?" asked Cameron, "I already gave you a whole hot dog."

"I guess even Sandshrews need their roughage", said Misty. Sandy kept pulling at the plant until he finally succeeded causing him to roll back into Cameron's lap. They suddenly saw the thing Sandy had pulled out. It was a small blue radish with green leaves on top, a little face, and tiny feet. It replied, "Oddish!" Cameron pulled out his Pokedex and aimed it at the plant.

"ODDISH, the weed Pokemon", replied Dexeena, "During the day, it keeps its face buried in the ground. At night, it wanders around sowing its seeds."

"Wow, I'm gonna catch it!" smiled Cameron as he took out an empty Pokeball. "Go ahead Sandy, battle that Oddish until its weak enough for me to catch!"

"Shrew!" replied a scared Sandy as he hid behind his master's legs.

"Sandy, what's wrong with you?" asked Cameron, "You can take on that little plant with your fury swipes attack, can't you?" Sandy started to run around in a panic as the Oddish started chasing him with a huge smile on its face.

"Quick Cameron, throw your Pokeball at Oddish before Sandy's done for!" shouted Brock. Cameron quickly replied and threw his Pokeball at the little plant. The ball opened up and Oddish got sucked in. The ball fell to the ground, started shaking around and then it stopped.

"All right!" shouted Cameron as he picked up the ball. "I caught Oddish!"

"He's definitely like Ash", thought Misty as she watched Cameron hold up the ball while wearing Ash's hat. Just like the time when she saw Ash catch his first Pokemon.

"Way to go Cameron!" said Brock giving him a thumbs up."

"And you didn't even have to weaken it either", said Stella.

"Yeah", said Cameron as he saw Sandy hiding behind a stump shaking nervously. "I don't know why you're afraid of this cute little thing", said Cameron, "But now that I've caught it, its now on our side. Why don't you go ahead and make friends." He opened up the Pokeball and released Oddish on the ground right in front of a nervous Sandy.

"Sandshrew?!" said Sandy which meant hello in the Sandshrew language. Oddish just looked at Sandy with hungry dots-for-eyes and jumped onto Sandy's head.

"SHREW!!!" cried Sandy who was running around while Oddish was clung on tight to him.

"Oddish, what are you doing to Sandy?!" asked Cameron.

"It's absorbing all the minerals from Sandy's body!" said Brock.

"Cameron, Oddish is a grass Pokemon and Sandy's a ground Pokemon", said Misty, "Haven't you learned from your TV show and your Gamekid thing that ground Pokemon are weak against grass Pokemon?!"

"That's right, I forgot!" cried Cameron as he ran over to Sandy and pried Oddish off of his head.

"We'll have none of that on my team Oddish!" scolded Cameron as he put Oddish back in its Pokeball. He then looked at the poor Sandshrew who was totally weakened. Cameron took a bottle of full-restore potion from his backpack and gave it to Sandy.

"I'm sorry Sandy", said Cameron who was cradling his friend in his arms. "I didn't know Oddish would do that to you. But don't worry, I'm gonna train Oddish hard so it won't attack you like it just did. And I'll always keep it in its Pokeball whenever you're outside of yours."

"Sandshrew!" said Sandy in a forgiving voice. Cameron smiled as he hugged the first friend he ever made in this exciting world.

"I don't think Ash has ever had the kind of experience we just saw with his Pokemon", said Brock.

"I miss those days!" sighed Misty as she looked up in the stars and saw a constellation of Ash.

* * * * * *

A few minutes later, the four were all tucked into their sleeping bags ready for the big journey ahead tomorrow. "Cameron", asked Misty who was across from him, "In the TV show from your world, does anyone ever see me taking a bath all naked?"

"No, I don't think anyone in America has ever seen you naked on the show", said Cameron.

"Thank goodness", said Misty relieved.

"But in the Japanese version, I'm not sure", said Cameron.

"AAAAAHHHH!!!!" screamed Misty.

That scream attracted the ears of a Pokemon. It started to run over to camp making loud barking sounds. "What's that?" asked Cameron as he stood up still in his sleeping bag. The others stood up still in their sleeping bags too until they looked like four huge slugs. Out of the bushes came a vicious Growlithe.

"A Growlithe!" shouted Brock, "Team Rocket must've gotten through the wall and they're trying to hunt us down!"

"Heal Growlithe!" called out a familiar voice. Out of the shadows came a pretty blue-haired woman wearing a police uniform.

"Officer Jenny!" shouted the four all smiling especially Brock.

"You must be Team Rocket soldiers up to no good!" said a serious Jenny, "Only Rockets would come from that trapped town over there!"

"But we're not Rockets", said Cameron, "We all just escaped from that place."

"Sounds like a crafty Rocket trick to me", said Jenny, "You all can tell your story at my station. You will all come with me and if any of you even think of running away, my Growlithe will trap you in a very hot fire spin!"

"Groooowl!" howled Growlithe as it spouted smoke through its nostrils showing them it was serious.

* * * * * *

Next we find our friends in Jenny's police station which was actually a small log cabin. She was looking at all the info in Cameron's Pokedex. "Okay, I guess you're all clean", said Jenny as she handed the Pokedex back to Cameron.

"And you look very nice and clean too!" said Brock while blushing. Stella suddenly grew an angry face and whacked Brock over the head.

"Forgive me my sweet!" begged Brock, "It's been a while since I saw an Officer Jenny and that was just an old habit that popped out of me. You're the one I really love!"

"Why don't you put that in writing", said Stella now smiling, "On the next fogged up window you see with your tongue!"

"Yes my love", said Brock feeling very small.

Jenny giggled for she knew how almost all men everywhere dreamed about dating or marrying an Officer Jenny. "I'm surprised that you've all gotten through that wall", she said, "I haven't even seen a Rocket go through it in the five years I've been patrolling this forest."

"We were hoping we could find you", said Misty, "So you could help us free Pallet Town."

"I would very love to do so", said Jenny, "I use to be the official policewoman of Pallet Town. Five years ago, I got a report that some Rockets were sneaking around the forest near the town. My Growlithe and I went to investigate. But when we got there, we fell into a deep pit that the Rockets had probably dug just for us. When we finally escaped, we found all of Pallet Town surrounded by an evil looking electric wall. I've failed my town!" she cried while Growlithe licked her hand trying to comfort her.

"Can't you call all your sisters and cousins from the other towns and cities to come and help you?" asked Cameron.

"I tried doing that a few years ago", said Jenny, "Some of us tried putting on rubber suits so we could walk through the wall without any harm. But we didn't count on all of those bad Growlithes and Arcanines guarding the wall from the inside. Once they got through, those dogs burned the rubber suits off of their bodies causing them all to get trapped too. As for me and my good Growlithe, we both took refuge in this abandoned cabin hoping one day we'd find a way to break down that wall. You four are the first people I've ever met to actually escape. How'd you do it?"

"With the help of my Onix",said Brock, "But I don't think it's big enough to carry a whole police force back through the wall."

"Probably not", sighed Jenny, "So where are all of you heading now that you've escaped?"

"We were on our way to Mt. Moon to collect some pieces of the Moonstone", said Brock.

"We need them as a big part to bring back a friend who might be able to defeat those Rockets once and for all", said Misty.

"And maybe along the way we can convince a very powerful gym leader to help us", said Cameron.

"Then that's settles it!" smiled Jenny, "Tomorrow morning I'm going to give you all a full police escort to Mt. Moon so we can get my home town back!"

"Thank you Officer Jenny", said Cameron with grateful eyes.

"Just call me Jenny kiddo", winked Jenny as she pinched Cameron's cheek.

* * * * * *

Back at Rocketville, AKA Pallet Town, a portal opened up around the very top of the electric wall, a huge Meowth shaped balloon flew out of it, and the portal closed up.

"It's just like the good old days, eh Meowth?" asked James as he was admiring himself in his old Rocket uniform.

"Yeah", said Meowth, "Only it's even better now that Jessie isn't here to whack us on the heads." But they did get whacked on the heads by two fans that were held in the dangerous hands of Jessie's new intern.

"Like the pin you throw when you're supposed to be throwing the grenade, Never enjoy a serious mission too much or else it might backfire on you!" said Reiko while James and Meowth were seeing stars and Pidgey's flying around their heads.

TO BE CONTINUED

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Well it looks like Cameron now has two Pokemon and a beautiful long arm of the law on his side. And just how dangerous is this newest member of Team Rocket. Stay tuned for chapter 4 to find out! ;) 


	4. Cameron's First Badge

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey, chapter 4

Cameron's First Badge

The next morning, Cameron and his friends were all getting a full police escort to Mt. Moon thanks to Officer Jenny. She was driving them all in her personal van with Cameron riding gunshot. He looked out the window holding Sandy in his arms so they could both see the wonders of this vast animated land.

"It looks like we'll all be passing through Viridian City everyone", said Jenny.

"Sigh", said Misty feeling a little sad. Cameron looked at Misty and wondered what was wrong with her. They drove through the tall buildings of Viridian City and passed the Rocket owned Pokemon gym that was still in ruins from Ash's final victory and there was a huge sign on it that said CONDEMNED.

"I guess Team Rocket abandoned it when they took over Pallet", said Brock.

"Double Sigh", said Misty.

"And there's the first Pokemon center Ash had ever visited", said Cameron.

"Tripple Sigh!" said Misty while a tear formed in her eye.

"What's wrong Misty?" asked Cameron, "You look a little down today."

"It's just that seeing all these familiar places reminds me of the time I first met Ash", said a sad Misty.

"You must really do care about him", smiled Cameron.

"I do not!" she shouted. "I remember that little loser stole my bike and wrecked it six years ago! I swore that I was gonna track him down until he pays me back for it! I'm really glad you freed us Cameron. Now that I'm back in the outside world, Ash is no longer free from our debt! Heh heh heh!"

Cameron, Brock, Stella, and Sandy all looked funny at Misty. "What?!!" she asked.

Little did they know was that a giant Meowth-shaped balloon was following them every inch of the way. It was piloted by James, Meowth, and their new partner Reiko. "Look, there's our old Rocket gym", said James. "And they're gonna tear it down! They just can't demolish all of our happy memories from that place!"

"What happy memories?!" sneered Meowth, "Don't you remember that our old tyrant of a boss used to torment us day and night at that place?! I just wish I could see the look on his and that dumb Persian's faces when they find out that his lowliest Rockets are now living the royal life. I bet they'd both be coughing up hairballs. Heh, Heh!"

James started laughing too. But Reiko just sat there picking her ear with her sharp katana. (Kids, this is something you should never do. Unless you're a psychotic ninja like Reiko!)

"Do you remember the time when our old nemesis Ash, tried to compete for the Earthbadge?" smiled James, "We rigged the booth he was standing in to electrify him whenever his Pokemon got beaten!"

"Yeah, and we also rigged Jessie's booth by accident making her feel the sparks too", said Meowth.

"HA HA HA HA!" laughed both James and Meowth just realizing that they got back at Jessie for all those years of abuse she put on them. But then they both got whacked on the head by two huge mallets marked HIS and ITS.

"Like the gigantic Dragonite that keeps its head in the clouds and ends up stepping on a manure factory. You should never keep your eyes off an enemy when you have the upper advantage!" said Reiko angrily as she pushed James's and Meowth's heads to the side of the balloon and discovered that Jenny's van was gone.

"Uh oh", said James, "The boss isn't gonna like this."

"What are you talkin' about?!" asked Meowth, "We're our own bosses now!" But they both got bonked on the head again by Reiko's twin mallets proving who was the boss of this mission.

"Interns can really move up in this world", said a dazed James.

* * * * * *

Jenny's van soon drove out of Viridian City, into Viridian Forest, and then they entered territory that was familiar to Brock, Pewter City. "Jenny, can we please stop here for a while?" begged Brock. "I have family that I haven't seen in years."

"Oh, okay", smiled Jenny, "As long as we're here, I think I'll visit my big sister. We'll rest here and continue our journey tomorrow."

Jenny had dropped the group off at the front yard of Brock's old home. Then she drove off to the police station that was across the street where her older sister, which looked exactly like her, was waiting eagerly for her.

"Jenny, it's so good to see you!" cried Jenny while hugging her.

"The same goes for me too Jenny", said the other Jenny.

"It's amazing that an entire family can all look alike, have the same careers, and all have the same exact name." Said Cameron, "I wonder how they can tell each other apart?"

"Brock always seems to know", said Misty winking, "Why don't you explain to Cameron the different ways you use to go ga-ga for each Jenny you see?"

"Please Misty", said Brock disgusted, "I was immature back then. I'm now an adult and Stella's a whole lot better than a hundred Jennies put together. She's the only love and beauty I need in my life." And he picked up Stella and started to hug her.

"Thanks Brock", smiled Stella, "But that still doesn't excuse you for what you did last night!"

"Oh darn", whispered Brock, "It was worth a shot."

* * * * * *

Brock knocked on the door and a girl who had spiky hair and shut eyes exactly like he had answered. "Big brother?" asked the girl.

"Yes it's me Suzy", smiled Brock patting his little sister on the head.

"Brock!!" cried Suzy as she leapt onto her brother knocking him down. "I'm so glad you're back!" she cried. "Because my dolly is ripped and I need it fixed!"

"Yep, it's good to be home!" smiled Brock.

* * * * * *

The minute they all entered inside. All of his ten little brothers and sisters piled on top of Brock welcoming him home. "Hey Cindy, Timmy, Tommy, Twins, and all the rest", smiled Brock as he hugged them all at the same time wishing he had longer arms.

"Don't I get a hug too?" asked a voice. Brock looked up and saw his father Flint dressed in an apron and holding a spatula in his hand.

"Hello Father", said Brock quietly. Flint knew that he wasn't really Brock's favorite person since the time he abandoned his family years ago causing his own wife to die of a broken heart and leaving Brock to take care of his ten younger siblings demolishing his dreams of traveling around and becoming a Pokemon breeder.

Brock approached Flint slowly and hugged him tightly. "Oh Dad!" cried Brock, "It's so great to be home and I forgive you!"

"Thank you son", said Flint totally relieved. All of Brock's siblings along with Misty, Stella, and Cameron were smiling at the touching sight. Cameron smiled and thought about his own father. "I'll be home soon Dad", he thought.

* * * * * *

Everyone was gathered at the table that afternoon for lunch. They had to bring extra chairs to the table for they had some guests, as if a table for eleven wasn't crowded enough already. Brock had prepared a meal of spaghetti for his siblings requested that he make it since they hadn't had his good cooking in years.

"Brock" said Timmy. "I really like Stella a lot. She's got pretty hair and beautiful eyes. I wish she were my sister-in-law!" Stella just blushed at the words he just said and then looked at Brock with a smiling face.

"Okay Brock, where's my five bucks?" asked Timmy.

"Five bucks?!!!" asked Stella now frowning.

"Yeah, Brock promised me five bucks if I said those nice things about you." Said Timmy innocently. Stella looked angrily at a nervous sweaty Brock and then smiled at Timmy.

"I'll give you ten bucks if you tickle Brock to death", smiled Stella as she handed Timmy a ten.

"Uh oh, I think I left the garlic bread in the oven too long", said Brock as he left the table and headed into the kitchen while Timmy followed him holding a feather. Everyone at the table started laughing.

"So Cameron", said Flint, "I understand that it was you who helped Brock and his friends escape from that trapped town."

"All I did was make a suggestion", said Cameron blushing, "It was Brock's Onix that was the hero."

"And that little suggestion was what started it all", smiled Flint, "That's why they should always have suggestion boxes in office buildings. Thank you Cameron for reuniting my whole family and I want to give you something."

"Aw, you don't have to sir", said Cameron humbly.

"But I want you to have this", said Flint as he opened up a nearby cabinet and took out something.

"Wow, a Pokebelt for carrying Pokeballs!" smiled Cameron, "But are you sure you don't want to give it to Brock?"

"I've been planing on making Pokebelts for each of my kids", said Flint, "And I'd like you to have my first one. Go ahead and try it on."

Cameron did as he was told and put on the belt. He took the Pokeballs that contained Sandy and Oddish out of his pocket and placed them into the built in holes on the belt. "Thank you sir", smiled Cameron. "This is really neat."

"Wow Cameron", smiled Stella, "Now you look like a real Pokemon trainer!"

"Too much like Ash if you ask me", thought Misty still thinking about Ash.

"Cameron", asked Tommy, "Wanna have a Pokemon match?"

"Me, actually competing in a real live Pokemon match?!" gasped Cameron.

"Why not?" asked Tommy, "Are you too scared to take on a little kid like me?"

"And all of us!" asked the rest of his siblings each holding a Pokeball.

"Why don't you go ahead Cameron", smiled Flint. "I gave them each one beginning Pokemon and they all need some experience."

"And so do you Cameron", smiled Misty.

* * * * * *

Everyone was outside in the backyard where Cameron was facing his very first opponent, Tommy.

"Go Diglett!" shouted Tommy as he released a cute little mole like Pokemon.

"Oddish, I choose you!" shouted Cameron as he released his new Pokemon.

"Why does he have to sound like Ash too?" thought Misty.

"Diglett, scratch attack now!" commanded Tommy as Diglett tried to slash up Oddish but quickly dodged out of the way. Oddish jumped on top of Diglett's head and started absorbing all the minerals from its body just like it did to Sandy the other night. "DIGLETT!" cried Tommy.

"Oddish, I didn't command you to use absorb!" said Cameron as he quickly pried Oddish off a drained Diglett while Tommy picked up his poor Pokemon.

"I'm sorry Tommy", said Cameron, "I just caught this Pokemon yesterday and it still needs some disciplining."

"That's all right", said Tommy, "Dad has a whole medicine cabinet of healing potion and besides, I now know that my Diglett needs some more training. Thanks for the match." Said Tommy bowing to him.

"You sure are a good sport Tommy", smiled Cameron feeling happy that he won his very first live Pokemon battle.

"I hope you'll be a good sport when you lose to me", said Cindy as she leapt in front of Cameron holding a Pokeball. "Go Krabby!" she shouted as she released a small crab. Oddish looked at Krabby, jumped out of Cameron's arms, landed on the crab's head and started absorbing again.

"No Oddish!" shouted Cameron, "I didn't command you to attack just yet!"

"That's okay", smiled Cindy, "We can handle your rebel Pokemon. Krabby, vicegrip!" Krabby quickly grabbed Oddish by the stems and started to hold it tightly so it couldn't absorb anymore.

"What'd I tell you?" smiled Cindy as she crossed her arms in triumph.

"Oddish, use your stun spore now!" commanded Cameron. Oddish managed to cough up some pollen which hit Krabby right between the eyes causing it to let go of Oddish and to fall backwards completely paralyzed.

"KRABBY!" shouted Cindy as she picked up her Pokemon while Oddish did a cute little victory dance.

Next the twins sent out their male and female Nidorans, but Oddish managed to paralyze them again with stun spore. Then Timmy approached Cameron. "Go Venonat!" shouted Timmy as he released a purple furry bug with huge red eyes.

"Oddish, stun spore now!" commanded Cameron.

"Venonat, psybeam now!" commanded Timmy as Venonat shot a powerful psychic beam from its forehead knocking Oddish out completely.

"ODDISH!!", shouted Cameron as he ran over and picked up his completely dazed Pokemon. "Don't worry Oddish", he said as he put it back in its Pokeball, "You've done all you could today." He put Oddish's ball back onto his belt and took out another one. "Go Sandy!" he shouted as he released his Sandshrew.

"Venonat, leech life now!" commanded Timmy as the bug rushed over to put the bite on Sandy.

"Sandy, use your sand attack now!" commanded Cameron as Sandy sprayed sand into Venonat's very sensitive eyes causing it to yelp, "NAT!!!"

"Now finish it off with a tackle attack", smiled Cameron. Sandy rolled up into a ball and threw himself at Venonat completely knocking it back into Timmy's arms.

"Venonat!" said Venonat apologizing to Timmy.

"It's okay Nat", smiled Timmy, "At least you defeated his first Pokemon. I couldn't be prouder of you."

"Your kids sure are good sports", said Stella to Flint.

"You can thank Brock for that", said Flint, "He taught his siblings to love and respect all Pokemon like they were their own children." Stella then looked at Brock who was watching his brothers and sisters battling with Cameron. She then put her arm around Brock and kissed him on the cheek.

"Does this mean I'm forgiven?" asked Brock smiling.

"What do you think?" smiled Stella as he tackled him onto the ground and started kissing him while Timmy and Venonat were watching them.

"Does this mean I get my five bucks from Brock?" he asked.

So far Cameron and Sandy were doing pretty good. Sandy mangaed to defeat the Caterpie, Weedle, Metapod, and Kakuna from the next four siblings. Finally Suzy, the youngest sibling approached Cameron.

"Are you ready to taste the agony of defeat?" asked Suzy in a cute little voice.

"Sure thing", said Cameron as he bent down and whispered into Sandy's ear. "You'd better go easy on her", said Cameron, "It might upset a young girl like her if you trash her Pokemon."

"Shrew", whispered Sandy and nodded his head. Then Cameron stood up just as Suzy released her Pokemon. "Go Butterfree!" shouted Suzy as she released a beautiful purple butterfly that flew over Sandy's head.

"A Butterfree!" thought Cameron nervously, "I'd thought she'd have a much smaller Pokemon after the cocoon types we just faced!"

"Butterfree, use your psychic attack!" commanded Suzy. Sandy found himself hovering in the air for Butterfree was using its psychic powers to lift him up, slam him onto the ground a few times, and throw him into a nearby tree.

"SANDY!" cried Cameron as he picked up his bruised Sandshrew who was feeling a little psyched-out.

"You did it Suzy!" shouted all of the siblings as they picked up their youngest sister and paraded her into the house with her Butterfree following them.

"I hope you weren't too disappointed Cameron", said Brock, "But I think it was nice of you to battle my siblings and build up their hopes and confidences. Now they'll be even more determined to keep training so they can take on any trainer big or small."

"Thanks", said Cameron feeling pretty good even though he lost in the end.

"Come on", said Brock, "Let me take you to your very first Pokemon center so you can learn how to get your Pokemon healed, my treat."

"But don't Pokemon centers heal them for free?" asked Cameron.

"Which is why it's a treat for both you and me!" winked Brock.

* * * * * *

An hour later, Cameron and Brock left the Pokemon center after getting Cameron's Pokemon healed. Cameron just had a nice conversation with Nurse Joy while a Chansey took the Pokeballs that contained his Pokemon to a healing machine.

"So that's what it was like being in a real live Pokemon center", said Cameron, "It was almost like being in a motel."

"But remember, each Pokemon center has only 3 day limits to a trainer." Explained Brock, "They can be pretty cruel to freeloaders." They turned around and saw a Chansey throw an old hobo out on the street along with his empty Pokeballs. "See what I mean?" asked Brock.

"I also noticed that you didn't try to romance the Nurse Joy that worked there", said Cameron.

"That's because I finally found Stella, my rightful love", smiled Brock, "And besides, that Nurse Joy used to be my babysitter when I was little. She even changed my diapers!" he said while blushing.

"Maybe Stella will do the same thing for you when you're older", laughed Cameron.

Brock was about to whack Cameron for that wisecrack until he noticed a huge building. "Hey, it's my old gym", smiled Brock as he pushed aside a huge rock, picked up a key, unlocked the doors to the gym and they both stepped inside.

"Yep, it's the same when I last left it", smiled Brock has he looked at the rock covered floor and the spot where he use to sit cross-legged whenever a trainer wanted to battle him.

"Cameron", said Brock, "It just feels so great to be back in my old home city with my family, friends, and all the other things that are so dear to me. And all of this happened because you dropped into my life. Is there any way I can repay you?"

"Well", said Cameron, "I would like to compete for a BoulderBadge if you don't mind. I want to experience my very first live official gym match."

"You got it!" smiled Brock as he leapt to his old spot while Cameron went over to the other side of the gym. "Why don't we make this a one on one match with no time limit?" asked Brock.

"That works for me", said Cameron, "Sandy, I choose you!" and he released Sandy who was looking a lot better and ready for battle.

"Then I choose Graveler!" said Brock as he released a large boulder monster with very strong arms.

"Sandy, use your fury swipes!" commanded Cameron.

"Graveler, harden yourself!" commanded Brock.

Sandy started slashing like crazy at Graveler but the giant rock was almost impossible to scratch. "Graveler, give him your seismic toss!" shouted Brock. Graveler then grabbed Sandy, crumpled him into a ball and threw him across the floor. Luckily Sandy's armor had protected him a little.

"Graveler, tackle him now!" shouted Brock as Graveler stared rolling like a steamroller heading toward Sandy.

"Quick Sandy, dig underground!" shouted Cameron as Sandy dug under the rocky floor escaping Graveler's attack just in time.

"Graveler, dig after him!" shouted Brock. Graveler started to tear through the rocky floor as well until all the guys saw were two holes in the floor and a lot of pounding coming from the ground.

"What have I done?!" thought Cameron imagining the mess his Sandshrew would become once this was all over. Just then Graveler emerged from the ground smiling.

"Way to go Graveler!" shouted Brock as Cameron bowed his head in defeat. Just then, Graveler fainted and Sandy leapt from out of the ground and landed onto Graveler's back shouting, "SANDSHREW!" while giving a victory sign with his claws.

"You did it Sandy!!" cried Cameron happily as he ran over and picked up Sandy who licked Cameron's face with joy.

Brock went over to his knocked out Graveler and patted him on its bumpy head. "Don't worry Graveler", smiled Brock, "You put on quite a battle for me and I'll always be proud of you."

"Graveler!" said the huge boulder while smiling.

"Congratulations Cameron", said Brock as he handed him a little badge in the shape of a boulder. "The BoulderBadge is yours. You earned it."

"All right!" smiled Cameron as he marveled at the small but important looking badge and then showed it to Sandy. "You're the one who really earned it Sandy." He smiled while Sandy stuck his chest out waiting for it to be pinned on him.

"Uh, I think you might need a shirt like me if you want to wear it", said Cameron thinking about the welfare of his proud Pokemon.

* * * * * *

Later, Cameron and Brock were walking back to the house with Sandy marching proudly along the way. "I'm sorry about the holes in your gym floor", said Cameron.

"Hey, don't sweat it", said Brock, "That usually happens a lot when trainers bring their ground Pokemon to battle. I always keep a hefty supply of rocks of all sizes to plug up those holes."

When they got back to Brock's house, they found Officer Jenny and her sister crouched down behind some bushes along with their Growlithes. "Jenny and uh, Jenny?", asked Brock, "What's going on?"

"Duck down and be quiet!" shouted both Jennies as they grabbed the boys by the shirts and brought them both down behind the bushes. "There's trouble afoot" said the Pewter Jenny.

"Team Rocket is holding your family and friends hostage in your own house!" said the Pallet Jenny, "And we can't let them see you!"

"Too late, they already have!" shouted James as he poked his head out of the window.

"James you jerk!" shouted Brock, "If you harm one hair on any of my loved ones...."

"Too late, we already did", smiled Meowth as he held up a lock of dark brown spiky hair from one of his siblings. Brock started to turn red with rage.

"You boys have a choice", said James, "You can either come in here peacefully and join our all-night hostage party or you can stay out there and we'll have to entertain our guests by ourselves. Meowth, if you please?"

"My pleasure James", said Meowth as he put on an Elvis wig and suit and started singing, "I ain't nuthin' but a Meowth cat, purring all the time! You ain't caught a Pokemon so you ain't even a peon of mine!" The group outside could hear everyone screaming in pain from inside.

"We've got to get in there!" cried a panicked Brock.

"And have you all taken back to Rocketville and make Officer Jennies look bad everywhere?" asked the Pewter Jenny, "We don't think so!"

"Wait, I think I have an idea!" said Cameron as he looked at Sandy.

* * * * * *

Cameron and Brock slowly approached the door and it opened. In the center of the room they found Brock's siblings on the floor all tied up. On the right side was Misty and Stella tied back to back on chairs and on the left they found Flint hanging upside down from the coat rack all tied up. Just then James, Meowth, and a girl they've never seen before jumped right in front of them holding a rope.

"I'm so glad you both could make it", said James, "We've saved a spot for you right by the fireplace."

"Now give us your Pokeballs if you want live humans in this house!" said Meowth holding a sack. Cameron and Brock complied and put their Pokeballs in Meowth's sack. Then Reiko quickly tied up the two guys and sat them right next to Misty and Stella.

"Ya' got any last words before we send you all back to Rocketville?" sneered Meowth.

"Yes I have", said Cameron, "If all of your prisoners are gonna be taken back to Rocketville, shouldn't you teach them your pledge of allegiance so they'll know it as soon as they get there?"

"Cameron, what are you doing?!" shouted an angry Misty.

"Why that's a marvelous idea!" smiled James, "Jessie will adore having a bunch of new subjects pledging their loyalty to her the minute she sees them. What do you say Meowth?"

"Oh, all right!" grumbled Meowth, "That is if it's all right with our high and mighty intern over here."

"Yes, that would be good", said an emotionless Reiko, "Our queen will be most pleased."

"Then it that case, I want you all to repeat after us or Meowth will start singing again!" smiled James. All of the hostages nervously repeated the Team Rocket motto over and over again for exactly 20 minutes until they all knew it by heart while their brains were about to disappear.

"Could you repeat that again please?" asked Cameron, "I want to be sure I get it right."

"They say the 52nd times the charm!" smiled James.

"I'm gonna kill Cameron for this!" thought an almost hoarse Misty.

Meowth suddenly put his ear against the stone floor and heard something. "Hey guys", he said, "I think something's going on down in the basement."

James and Reiko put their ears against the stone floor and heard it too. "Hey pops", said James as he turned to Flint, "What's going on in your basement?"

"Basement? This house doesn't have a basement." Said Flint puzzled. Just then the floor under James, Meowth, and Reiko collapsed and the three of them fell right through it. "Maybe it does", said Flint surprised.

Everyone heard a bunch of barking, biting, scratching, and yelling coming from the hole. Soon out popped the Growlithes who ran over and untied the hostages with their teeth. And out came Sandy carrying the sack of stolen Pokeballs.

"Your plan worked Cameron!", said Brock.

"What plan?!" demanded Misty who was suffering a headache that was worse than Psyduck's.

"Well", said Cameron holding Sandy, "Before we stepped in, I asked Sandy and both of the Jennies' Growlithes to dig a hole right under the house. I wanted to keep the Rockets talking so they could hear the sounds of their voices and bring them down into the ground so they'd be powerless. And I'm sorry we had to tear up your nice floor to do it Mr. Flint."

"It's okay Cameron", smiled Flint, "I'm just glad you were able to save us all."

"And I'll get some rocks from my gym to plug up that hole", said Brock, "Right after we deposit some unwanted trash from it." He opened the door and the two Jennies charged in and circled the hole where they saw James, Meowth, and Reiko lying in the dirt looking battered, beaten, and chewed to perfection.

"You three are under arrest!" shouted both Jennies as they took out their handcuffs.

"Sorry, we don't feel like resting right now!" said James as he took out a Pokeball and released what looked like a Koffing with two heads. "Weezing, smokescreen now!" commanded James as Weezing flew around the room spraying black smoke all over the house. When the smoke cleared, they found the hole empty for the Rockets had escaped.

"I hate to put this on my report", sighed the Pewter Jenny.

* * * * * *

The next day, Cameron and his friends were all climbing inside Pallet Jenny's van ready to continue their journey to Mt. Moon. Brock was standing in front of his family and Pewter Jenny getting ready to say goodbye.

"Do you really have to go Brock?", asked Suzy, "I'm gonna miss you again!"

"And I will too little sis", smiled Brock, "But if we stay here, those Rockets will come back again. We need to keep traveling until every Rocket on this planet is defeated forever. And only then, will I come back."

"And don't worry Suzy", smiled Pewter Jenny, "I'm going to stay in this house until I can be sure that the Rockets won't ever come back here."

"Please be careful Brock!" said Suzy as she hugged her big brother while all the other siblings hugged him at the same time.

"Don't forget the head of this household", said Flint as he managed to squeeze through the cluster of kids to get to his oldest boy.

"You take good care of the family you got traveling with you", said Flint, "We're all counting on you."

"You bet Dad", smiled Brock as he hugged his father and then stepped into the van. Everyone waved goodbye as they saw the van drive off into the horizon while Brock waved out through the back window while a tear formed into his closed eye.

* * * * * *

Meanwhile in the Meowth balloon, James, Meowth, and Reiko were busy tying bandages around each other almost like how Primeapes like to pick the lice off of each other's backs.

"UUUUGGGGHHH!" screamed James as he started to scratch his bruised back, "Get these lice off of me!"

"The narrator only meant it as an example you lame-brain!" shouted Meowth as he bopped James on the head with a tiny mallet.

"Like the fresh white briefs that become pink when you put them in the wash with red long-johns. Will my brain grow small like those fools if I'm near them every minute?" sighed Reiko.

TO BE CONTINUED 


	5. Zubattalion

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 5

Zubattalion

Cameron and his friends had finally reached the foot of Mt. Moon thanks to Officer Jenny and her van. "I can't believe I'm actually looking at the famous Mt. Moon", smiled Cameron, "It seems so big compared to the one in my Gameboy."

"Are you sure what you need is located here?" asked Jenny.

"Yes it is", said Misty, "Six years ago, we saw the famous Moonstone explode into a hundred pieces. They're now being watched by the Clefaries and Clefables."

"Do you think they'll let us borrow two of them?" asked Stella.

"Our old friend Seymour Scientist also lives here", said Brock, "The Clefairies and Clefables like Seymour a lot. I'm sure he can convince them to give us two little pieces of Moonstone."

"I remember Seymour", smiled Cameron thinking about that funny guy with glasses and a lab coat who always broke out into happy poems at certain times. Suddenly the van stopped and Jenny couldn't seem to drive any further.

"Jenny, what's wrong with your van?" asked Misty.

"The road to Mt. Moon is too steep and rocky for my van", said Jenny, "We'll all have to go on foot to the entrance."

Everyone got out of the van while Jenny pushed a button on the side of the rearview mirror. To everyone's surprise, the van suddenly sprouted vines that covered the entire van from sunroof to tires making it look like a huge bush. "Just a little something to keep Team Rocket off our trail", smiled Jenny.

"For a minute I thought that van had one too many car washes", said Cameron.

* * * * * *

The group walked for an hour up the steep mountain until they finally came up to the entrance of Mt. Moon. "At last, we finally made it", said a tired Jenny.

"Thank goodness", moaned Misty as she took off her shoe. "I think I have a pebble in my shoe."

"I once found a Geodude in my shoe", said Brock, "Don't ask!"

"Well, shall we all enter?" asked Stella. The group was about to enter the cave until they heard a funny voice screaming. Out ran a guy with glasses and a lab coat carrying a Clefairy in his arms being chased by a flock of angry Zubats. He accidentally ran into Cameron knocking him on the ground. Then the Zubats flew right back into the cave feeling very proud.

"Seymour Scientist?" asked Misty and Brock looking at their old friend who was scrounging around on the ground looking for his glasses. Cameron was doing the same exact thing. "Clefairy!" said the little pink fairy like Pokemon as it found both of their glasses and returned them to their rightful owners. Sort of.

"AUUUGH!" my glasses are damaged!" cried Seymour as he ran around in circles.

"Uh, I think we may have each other's glasses", said Cameron as he took off Seymour's pair and handed them back to him.

"Oh thank you nice kid!" smiled Seymour as he put on his right glasses and handed the other ones back to Cameron and then went into poem mode.

"I was pursued by Zubats in the darkness of the cave.  
They have teeth like daggers, there was no way I could be brave.  
When I thought I was free, everything just went blurry.  
I couldn't see. I couldn't see. I went in a crazy furry.  
But thanks to my Clefairy and this helpful young boy.  
I've gotten my sight back. Oh for joy, FOR JOY!!!"

"Yep, he's the same old Seymour", sighed Misty as everyone looked funny at the now happy man spreading his arms out in happiness.

* * * * * *

At the bottom of Mt. Moon, James, Meowth, and Reiko were following the tire tracks hoping it would lead them to the rebels but instead they came across a huge bush.

"It's just what we need", grumbled Meowth, "A huge convention of leaves and twiggies blocking our way!"

"How could they possibly drive through that huge bush without destroying it?" wondered Reiko.

"Maybe they're driving a ghost van", thought James. But then he got bopped on the head by Reiko's mallet again.

"Unintelligent ideas really disturbs the ninjas train of thought!" scowled Reiko.

"Well I'm glad we found this bush cause this cat's gotta take a whiz!" said Meowth as he was about to undo the zipper on the bottom of his fur while James and Reiko watched curiously.

"Hey, do you mind?!" shouted Meowth as he quickly turned around. "Sorry", said James blushing. "My apologies Meowth-san", said Reiko. Meowth was about to tinkle until he noticed something tucked underneath the bush. It was a license plate that read, JENNY15.

"Hey guys, come look at this", said Meowth.

"Oooooh!" smiled James, "Are you gonna show it to us after all?"

"No you sicko!" shouted Meowth as he slashed James's face and then slashed away some of the vines. "Feast your eyes on this!" he said as he showed them Jenny's van.

"Like the Magmar that blends into the fire so it can't be detected", said Reiko, "Those fools thought they could blend in with Mother Nature's handiwork." She then took out her katana and punctured holes in all four tires.

"They must've gone up that mountain!" said James, "We've gotta get after them."

"Like the Nidoking that enjoys moonlight evenings with the Nidoqueen, I agree with you James-san", said Reiko as she lead the way up the mountain.

"What's with the metaphors all the time?" asked Meowth, "Don't you ever get sick of metaphors?"

"Like the tiny little word that's hidden in the second half of the English alphabet, NO!" shouted Reiko in a loud threatening voice knocking Meowth back down the mountain.

"Even her voice is a weapon", thought James.

* * * * * *

Our heroes were all sitting around the entrance of the cave listening to the Zubats singing their screechy songs from inside. Brock just pulled out some of his Pokemon food while they watched Seymour's Clefairy along with Seymour himself chowing down on the food that looks only good to Pokemon.

"Thanks Brock", smiled Seymour, "I really missed your brand of Pokemon food"

"I'm glad that you're the first and only human that likes my Pokemon food", smiled Brock.

"What a weird man", whispered Stella.

"I don't know", whispered Jenny, "I like enchiladas stuffed with wild cherries myself."

"That's my favorite too!" said Seymour.

"Wow!" smiled Jenny, "I was always considered the outcast Jenny for my unusual tastes in foods. Thanks Seymour for brightening my day!"

"Uh, your welcome Officer Jenny", said Seymour blushing. "So Cameron", said Seymour looking at the boy who was feeding his Sandshrew, "You're really a kid from another universe? Why that's amazing. How long have you been here?"

"So far this is my fifth day here", said Cameron, "My dad must be going mental by now wondering if I'll ever come back!"

"Maybe not", said Seymour, "We scientists have this theory that when someone gets pulled into another universe, time in their universe stands still from them. So when you do return, it'll be like you've never left. Which means your father won't even know you've left your room even if you're stuck here for 100 years."

"A hundred years?!!" gasped Cameron, "Even though I think your world is cool, I don't really want stay here that long! But thanks for your theory. Now I feel a little relaxed."

"Don't worry Cameorn", said Misty, "Once we get a couple of Moonstones, we'll be able to bring Ash back and send you back home as well if Seymour will let us use some of them."

"Me and my Clefairy would be happy to give you as many as you want!" smiled Seymour.

"Clefairy", agreed Clefairy.

"That is if we could get to them", said Seymour sadly.

"What do you mean?" asked Brock.

"It's those Zubats!" said Seymour, "Many years ago, Clefairy and I went to the nearest town below to pick up some supplies. When we tried to enter the cave to rejoin our Clefairy and Clefable family, a raging flock of Zubats charged us out of there. For years we've tried many strategies to get back in, but those Zubats always manage to get the best of us. Today we tried to bribe them with a video collection of Batman Beyond, but that didn't work. The Zubats just shredded them up like noodles and then chased us out again. That's when we bumped into all of you."

"Can't you figure out why they're all so angry?" asked Misty.

"No I can't", said Seymour, "They used to be so friendly, but now they won't let anyone in."

"Maybe someone who can speak their language can help us", said Brock as he released his Golbat. "Golbat", said Brock, "I need you to talk to the Zubats and find out why they won't let Seymour or anyone else into their cave."

"Bat!" replied the Golbat as it flew into the cave and was greeted by all the Zubats.

"Zubat, bat, bat, bat, Zubat!" "Golbat, bat, bat, Gol" said the group of bats enjoying a delightful conversation while hanging upside-down from the cave. A few minutes later, Golbat flew back to Brock and started explaining the situation to him.

"Golbat, bat, bat, bat," said Golbat.

"Hmmm, I see", said Brock.

"He can speak Golbat?" asked Cameron.

"Brock's a Pokemon breeder", said Misty, "Pokemon breeders need to understand the languages of all their Pokemon."

"What did Golbat say?" asked Stella.

"Golbat says that all the Zubats made a pact never to trust or let another human into their cave again", said Brock.

"But why?" asked Seymour, "We all used to be such good friends."

"Many years ago, a horde of humans in black suits with a human letter on their chests stormed their cave causing trouble for them and all the other Pokemon that lived in there", explained Brock.

"Humans in black suits with human letters?" said Jenny, "That sounds like the Rs of Team Rocket to me."

"Seymour, you didn't see any Rockets sneaking around Mt. Moon back then did you?" asked Misty.

"No", said Seymour, "Clefairy and I must've been in town the day those awful Rockets invaded. I hope all the Clefairies and Clefables are okay."

"Clefairy!" replied the Clefairy concerned.

"Well the good news is that Golbat has convinced the Zubats to give us safe passage through the cave", said Brock, "Just as long as we behave ourselves."

"Well then let's get going", smiled Seymour as he picked up his Clefairy while they were dancing and singing with glee. "We've got a family reunion waiting for us!"

"Let's hope Big Auntie Clefable doesn't wanna hug and kiss him to death", laughed Misty.

The group entered the cave that was pretty huge. Cameron looked up at all the Zubats that were hanging upside-down from the stalactites looking pretty unfriendly.

"Boy would I like to catch one of those", whispered Cameron.

"Not so loud", grumbled Misty, "Do you want them to go into a rage again?!"

"Sorry" said Cameron blushing.

Golbat was flying around the cave with a huge smile on its oversized mouth. "Your Golbat seems to feel right at home here", said Stella.

"That's because this was once its home", smiled Brock, "Its come a long way from being just another Zubat. Its been a real treasure to me."

One Zubat heard what Brock had said and started to do some thinking.

"Here it is everybody", said Seymour, "This is wear all the Clefairies and Clefables live along with every single piece of the Moonstone." When they all entered, they discovered that the place was even larger than the cave they just walked through. Mainly because it was completely empty.

"What happened to all the Clefairies and Clefables?" asked Misty.

"I don't know", said Seymour surprised, "Not only are they gone. So are all the Moonstones! The spot where they kept and worshiped them is empty. What happened?!"

"Do you think they all moved to another place in the mountain?" asked Cameron.

"Maybe you're right", said Seymour. Just then, they heard a soft cry. Clefairy quickly bounced over to a nearby rock and found what it was. It was a larger version of a Clefairy, a Clefable. Cameron took out his Pokedex.

"CLEFABLE, the evolved form of Clefairy", said Dexeena, "A timid fairy Pokemon that is rarely seen, the Clefable runs and hides the moment it senses people."

"Clefairy, fairy, fair", said Clefairy trying to calm the nervous Clefable down. Clefable looked at the all the strange human faces and started to shake. But when it saw Seymour, it smiled and tackled him onto the ground happy to see its old friend again.

"It's good to see you too", smiled Seymour, "Have you been living here all by yourself these past years? Where are all your brothers and sisters?"

"Clefable!" cried Clefable as it started to shake around wiggling its fingers. An image started to appear in front of everyone. It showed about 50 Clefairies and Clefables dancing around the cave, laughing and singing and praying to their great collection of Moonstones. Then a horde of Rockets barged into the cave surprising all the cute little Pokemon. The Rockets suddenly made their way for Jessie, James, and Meowth who made their unforgettable speech along with the other Rockets.

"Hello all you cute little puffs of pink", smiled Jessie evily. "We were all just passing by and we wanted to check out your beautiful collection of Moonstones along the way."

"Yes, they certainly are beautiful", said James looking at the stones through a spyglass. Then everyone in the cave started laughing at James. "What?" he asked as he took out a mirror and found out he had a black ring on his right eye.

"Meowth!!!" said James annoyed.

"Just adding a little humor for these puffballs on their darkest hour", laughed Meowth.

"Well anyway", continued Jessie who had now calmed down, "We like these Moonstones so much, that we each want to take one with us as a souvenir."

"And we've got over 100 Rockets here with us", said James, "I hope there'll be enough leftover for all of you little cuties." The Clefairies and Clefables started to get angry as they all piled around the Moonstones ready to defend them.

"Aw, it looks like the little puffballs don't wanna share", said Meowth.

"Maybe we should respect their wishes and let them keep their precious stones", said Jessie, "Let's just take them all with us along with the stones! Right everyone?!"

"Right!" shouted the Rockets. Some of them took out their Pokeballs and released a pack of Drowzees and Hypnos. They quickly used their hypnosis powers to put all the Clefairies and Clefables to sleep until they looked like a huge pile of pink pillows.

"Gather them all up my loyal Rockets", said Jessie, "They'll be an excellent addition to our future kingdom!" All of the Rockets stuffed the Clefairies and Clefables into huge nets while Jessie, James, and Meowth put all the Moonstones in a huge bag. One Clefable was hiding behind a rock this whole time watching sadly as those evil humans took away everything it held dear.

Then the image stopped and the Clefable fell to the ground all sad and tired. "This is terrible!" cried Seymour as he and Clefairy helped the poor Clefable up. "Those Rockets took away our entire family and I wasn't here to protect them!"

"There was nothing you could do Seymour", said Misty, "We've all tried ourselves but that didn't stop them from taking over Pallet Town."

"This means that Team Rocket must have all those poor Clefairies and Clefables hidden somewhere in Rocketville", said Brock, "Along with all the Moonstones!"

"Does this mean we have to go back to Rocketville?" asked Stella.

"I should say not!" said Jenny. "Team Rocket is still after us. If we head back in the other direction without a cavalry, they'll surely catch us and take us back with no hope of ever freeing my town."

"We were hoping we could get a gym leader who has very powerful trainers and Pokemon to come and help us", said Cameron.

"Well then Clefairy, Clefable, and I are coming with you!" said Seymour as he hugged his two Pokemon. "We'll travel through rain, mist, snow, and bogs. Until we find a way to defeat those Rocket dogs! Sticking together will be our master plan. And then we'll all be reunited with our Clefairy clan!"

"Clefairy!" "Clefable!" shouted the two Pokemon giving each other a high five.

"Oh great", sighed Misty, "It looks like Team Rocket's not the only one who's gonna give us corny poems!" Both Cameron and Jenny just giggled at Seymour's happy poetry.

* * * * * *

James, Meowth, and Reiko who had just stepped into the cave were all being chased by the angry Zubats. "You just had to play that CD of Vanilla Ice out loud, didn't you?!" asked Meowth angrily.

"Hey, it's not my fault these Zubats don't have ears for classical music!" whined James.

"You should not have turned on that CD player in the first place you fool!" shouted Reiko, "Those rebels could've heard us and we would've lost them!"

"Let's concentrate on losing these mini-draculas!" shouted Meowth. And they did by running off a cliff and landing in a new part of the cave. Right at the feet of Cameron and friends.

"Are you guys all right?" asked Cameron.

"Yeah I'm fine", said James, "Thank's for asking.

"Arigato", said Reiko.

"Why are we thanking these chumps?!" shouted Meowth. "They're right in front of us. Let's get 'em!"

"Not so fast!" shouted Jenny as she released her Growlithe. "You're all under arrest for taking over my town, kidnapping Pokemon, and stealing Moonstones from this nice guy!" Seymour started blushing from her compliment.

"Oh yes", smiled James, "I do remember that marvelous day like it was yesterday. Now I get to live it again. For joy!" he said as he released his Weezing.

"Weezing, knock them all out with your poison gas", commanded James.

"Weezing!" moaned Weezing as it flew around the cave spraying green gas all over our heroes while they quickly covered their noses and mouths.

"Golbat, leech life now!" commanded Brock. Golbat quickly sucked up all the poison, which was extremely delicious if you're a Zubat or Golbat. Then it bit Weezing on the head and started to suck it dry until it fell to the ground like a deflated balloon.

"WEEZING!!!" cried James as he returned it to its Pokeball. "You'll pay for that! Go Victreebel!" shouted James as he released a huge man-  
eating plant. But instead of attacking our heroes, it tried to eat James's head. "Victreebel! Stop it!" whined James, "Why do you always persist on chomping my head?!"

"Yeah!" grumbled Meowth, "There's definitely no chewy liquid center in there!"

"It looks like the lowly intern will have to handle the situation as usual", sighed Reiko as she took out a Pokeball. "Go Tentacruel!" she shouted as she released a huge squid. "Now you will all feel the wrath of Tentacruel's cold clammy tendrils!"

Everyone released a Pokemon ready to defend themselves from this multi-  
armed enemy.

"Sandy, sand attack!" shouted Cameron.

"Staryu, water gun!" shouted Misty.

"Golbat, razor wind!" shouted Brock.

"Tangela, vine whip!" shouted Stella

"Growlithe, flamethrower!" shouted Jenny

"Tentacruel, use your barrier technique", smiled Reiko. Tentacruel quickly raised its tendrils and a huge invisible wall formed around it and Team Rocket protecting them all from the coming attacks.

"HA HA HA!" laughed Reiko, "Like that time traveling doctor from my favorite movie who used a bulletproof vest to protect himself from Libyan terrorists. Nothing can penetrate a Tentacruel barrier! But my pet can still attack all of you though! Tentacruel, give them your acid attack!"

"Cruel!" replied Tentacruel as it shot powerful jets of acid at the good Pokemon causing them to run behind their masters' legs.

"Shrew!" apologized Sandy.

"Don't worry Sandy", said Cameron picking up his friend. "I don't expect you to keep fighting while under a poisonous attack like that."

"You respect your Pokemon dearly boy!" smiled Reiko, "Too bad, that'll be the last time you'll ever hold each other. Tentacruel, grab all those rebels!"

"Cruel!" replied Tentacruel as its tendrils went right through the barrier and was about to grab everyone. Just then all the Zubats flew into the cave and let out a huge screeching noise all at once. Everyone covered their ears in pain, even Team Rocket. The screeches even shattered the barrier that was protecting them. Then the Zubats used their supersonic powers to confuse Tentacruel causing it to dance around and to grab all three rockets shaking them up and down.

"Tentacruel, what are you doing?!" shouted Reiko who couldn't get her arms free to defend herself.

"I've already gotten over the trauma of being seized by one Tentacruel", cried Meowth, "Now this!"

"And I thought my Pokemon liked to hurt me!" said James, "I'm not alone in this world after all!"

"Clefairy, Clefable, why don't you give them your metronome attacks", said Seymour.

"Fairy", "Fable", replied the two cute little Pokemon as they started shaking their bodies while wiggling their fingers back and forth.

"Ah, cool, it's the metronome!" smiled Cameron, "I remember having fun with this attack when playing with my Gameboy. You never know what's gonna happen!"

Suddenly a huge whirlwind appeared sucking up Tentacruel along with Team Rocket and they started flying out through a big hole above the cave.

"It looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!" shouted all three at once.

Everyone cheered from their latest victory, even all the Zubats. Then one Zubat approached Golbat and started to speak to it. Then Golbat flew over to Brock and translated what the Zubat had just said.

"What did it say Brock?" asked Misty.

"This Zubat wants to become a powerful Golbat like mine", said Brock, "That's why it wants to come with us and train so it can win battles and one day evolve."

"Why sure", smiled Misty, "We could use another Pokemon to our team. But who gets to be its trainer?" Zubat smiled and flew to the person it wanted to train with.

"You want me to be your master?" smiled Cameron as the Zubat perched itself on his shoulder and smiled, "Zubat!"

"Yes", smiled Brock, "Zubat saw how much you cared for your Sandshrew so it decided to pick you as its master."

"Well I'm glad to have you aboard Zubat", smiled Cameron as he shook hands with Zubat. Actually he shook fingers and wing with it.

* * * * * *

Our heroes were now at the bottom of the mountain ready to drive off to bring back reinforcements to help them free Rocketville and get Seymour his Clefairy family and the Moonstones back. When they got to Jenny's van, they found all the vines that disguised it gone.

"No wonder why Team Rocket found us", said Jenny. "Maybe next time I'll use poison ivy vines." She was about to step in until she shouted, "OH NO!"

"What's wrong Jenny?" asked Seymour.

"LOOK!" shouted Jenny as she showed them the four punctured tires. "Vandalizing an offical police van is a federal offense!" shouted an angry Jenny, "I'll see to it that those Rockets fry for this!" Cameron felt relieved that this Officer Jenny was on their side.

"I guess this means we'll have to walk all the way to the next town!" sighed Stella.

"Well the closest town I know is Cerulean City", said Seymour, "That's where I always go to get my supplies."

"That's perfect!" said Jenny now smiling, "My cousin patrols that city. She can lend me another van so we can be on our way."

"Cerulean City's your home town Misty", smiled Brock, "And your sisters too. Maybe they can help us defeat the Rockets with their powerful gym trained Pokemon."

"Yeah, good idea", whispered Misty who was mad at Brock for bringing that up. She could just imagine all the teasing and put-downs her sisters had saved up for her these past five years.

So the gang of six, which now included Seymour, left Mt. Moon and headed for Cerulean City. Cameron had let his new Zubat out of its Pokeball so it could get used to the sunlight. It flew around happily eagerly waiting for the day it would become a Golbat.

TO BE CONTINUED

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Well it looks like Cameron now has three Pokemon and another human friend added to his team. What lies ahead for our friends as they approach Cerulean City? Stay tuned to find out! ;) 


	6. The Not So Slow-Pokemon

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 6

The Not So Slow-Pokemon

Cameron and friends were now traveling across a beautiful beach, along with their new companion Seymour Scientist, heading for Cerulean City.

"Isn't this beach wonderful?!" smiled Misty with stars in her eyes, "I haven't seen the beautiful blue ocean in five years! It's much better than looking at dirty sewer water. I was getting sick of that stuff!"

"Mainly that's because people have gotten sick in that water", laughed Stella.

"This beach is very special to me!" smiled Misty, "This is where my sisters and I used to hang out every summer. I can still remember the spot where they use to bury me in the sand. And then they go leave with some tattoo-coated bikers and come back for me in about a week!" Then she started to frown.

"Gee, I knew Misty's sisters always picked on her", thought Cameron, "But not like that!"

"But I'm not gonna let that incident spoil my mood!" smiled Misty as she threw off her yellow jacket and jeans showing off her red bikini. "It's time for some fun in the sun!"

"But Misty, we don't have time for any beach fun", said Brock.

"Yeah", agreed Jenny, "Team Rocket's still on our trail and they could spot us easily in this wide open beach!"

"Oh all right!" sighed Misty as she slowly got dressed, "But can we please go shell collecting along the way? I'd go ballistic if we left a beach and I didn't bring back any shells with me."

"I suppose that would be okay", said Jenny, "Just as long as we keep moving."

So our heroes kept walking, with their shoes off, so they could enjoy the water splashing against their feet. Cameron smiled as he watched Sandy run across the stuff he feels right at home in. Sand! He almost blended in with the beach. Misty was picking up any shell she could find with glee while her Seaking and Staryu were swimming along beside her. Psyduck waddled right behind her for he still didn't know how to swim. Brock and Stella walked together holding each other in the romantic atmosphere.

Jenny looked over at Seymour and noticed that his face was bright red and he was sweating terribly. She took out a small tube and approached him. "Seymour, I think you need some sun screen", said Jenny as she took off his glasses and applied the cream all over his face.

"Uh, thank you Officer Jenny", said Seymour turning even redder than ever, "When you live in the mountains all your life, you don't tend to get much heat."

"Please just call me Jenny", smiled Jenny.

"Okay Jenny", smiled Seymour, "I think you might need some of that sun screen yourself. You're becoming red too."

"Oh my", said Jenny as she looked into her compact mirror. But it wasn't a sunburn red, it was another kind of red. ;)

"Just look at all these pretty shells I found!" giggled Misty as she held out her backpack filled with shells of every shape and size.

"It looks like someone else found his own shell too", said Cameron as he pointed to Psyduck who had his bill against a huge spiral shell.

"Maybe Psyduck does take after you after all", smiled Brock.

"If only he could take after my brains", sighed Misty.

"That looks like a Slowbro shell", said Seymour.

"Slowbro?" asked Cameron as he took out his Pokedex.

"SLOWBRO, the hermit crab Pokemon", replied Dexeena, "This Pokemon can only be formed when a Shellder clamps on to a Slowpoke's tail. When that happens, they instantly evolve into a Slowbro."

"Yes", said Seymour, "Usually all Shellders are bivalve shaped but once they combine with a Slowbro, it suddenly becomes spiral shaped. It's been a mystery to all us scientists."

"It looks like the Slowbro abandoned its shell", said Cameron, "And Psyduck's trying to use it as a horn." Misty was shocked as she saw Psyduck trying to blow through the shell like he was Dizzy Gillespeie. Even his cheeks were puffing up like crazy. But instead of notes, out popped little round things.

"YOU STUPID PSYDUCK!!!" shouted Misty as she shook Psyduck around causing him to drop the shell and let all of the round things spill onto the beach. "You can't even respect your own watery kind can you?!"

"PSY-YAI-YAI!" shouted Psyduck while clutching its head.

"Careful Misty", said Cameron, "It looks like Psyduck's losing his marbles!"

"Those aren't marbles", said Misty as she stuffed Psyduck back into his Pokeball, "Those are Slowpoke eggs. You usually find them in abandoned Slowbro shells."

"But where's the Mamma Slowbro?" asked Cameron, "She just didn't abandon her children. Did she?"

"Of course she did", said Seymour, "You see Cameron, the Shellder doesn't live as long as a Slowbro. When the Shellder dies, the Slowbro eats the meat of the Shellder and then lays its eggs into the empty shell. Once the Slowbro finds a safe secluded spot for its young. The Slowbro then goes into the ocean and dies."

"Wow", said Cameron, "That means all those poor little Slowpokes have to fend for themselves once they're born."

"Well at least they won't have to worry about forgetting when Mother's Day is", said Brock.

"Look", said Stella, "Some of the eggs are cracking up."

"That means it's time for the next generation of Slowpokes to arrive", said Misty, "Everyone get behind that huge rock over there. It's not good for newborn Slowpokes to see humans." Everyone followed Misty to a huge rock that was big enough for six humans to hide behind and there they watched a most amazing and beautiful sight. One by one, a cute little pink Pokemon hatched out of each egg. They had faces that looked like hippos, and very long tails. They were no bigger than your hand and they kept saying "Slowpoke!" in cute sounding voices. Cameron took out his Pokedex again.

"SLOWPOKE, the dopey Pokemon", replied Dexeena, "This water-psychic Pokemon is so slow and dopey, it takes five seconds for it to feel pain when under attack."

"I don't think they look dopey", said Jenny, "I think they look so cute and tiny."

"Aren't Slowpokes usually bigger?" asked Brock, "About the size of a dog?"

"They'll get bigger", said Misty, "Just as soon as they get into the ocean and swim around for a year."

"Correct", said Seymour, "It's like when you put a tiny fish into a bathtub. It might get too big for your fishbowl."

"There they go", said Stella as they watched about 30 Slowpokes leave the shell and the hatched eggs and crawl off into the sea.

"Happy journey to all of you", sighed Misty who just loved watching the habits of water Pokemon.

"Hey, that one hasn't left yet", said Cameron pointing to one Slowpoke who was crawling around in the sand trying to find the water. Instead, it kept banging its head against the rock they were all hiding behind.

"Psyduck must've given it stupid germs", thought Misty. Just then they heard a loud cawing sound shouting "FEEAARROOOW!" Everyone looked up and found a huge bird with large wings and a sharp scary looking beak. Cameron aimed his Pokedex at it.

"FEAROW, the beak Pokemon, the evolved form of Spearow", replied Dexeena, "With its huge and magnificent wings, it can stay aloft without ever having to land for rest. It usually likes to fly around looking for food like clueless little Slowpokes!"

"Everyone duck down!" shouted Jenny as the Fearow swooped down, grabbed the poor Slowpoke with its talon and flew off."

"SLOWPOKE!" cried the frightened Slowpoke.

"That poor little Slowpoke was just born!" shouted Cameron, "That bird can't do this!"

"Actually it can", said Brock, "It's the way nature works."

"Well I just can't stand here and watch an innocent baby get eaten by that anti-stork!" shouted Cameron, "Sandy, use your swift attack to bring that Fearow down!"

"No Cameron!" shouted Misty, "You don't know what you're doing!"

"Shrew!" said Sandy as he pulled some glowing stars out of his armor and started throwing them at the Fearow like a trained ninja. Fearow cawed loudly and let go of the Slowpoke. Cameron started to run and then slid across the sand until the Slowpoke landed safely in his hand.

"You're safe now kid", smiled Cameorn.

"Slowpoke", said the Slowpoke gratefully as it hugged Cameron's finger with its tail.

"Now you've done it hero!" shouted Misty, "We're all gonna become Swiss cheese now that you've ticked off that Fearow!"

"FEAROW!" shouted the bird as it started to soar down at our heroes while its beak started to spin around like a drill.

"Go Pokeball!" shouted Cameron as he threw an open Pokeball at Fearow. But Fearow just destroyed it with its beak.

"That's Fearow's drill peck!" shouted Jenny, "Its most powerful attack!"

"Zubat, I choose you!" shouted Cameron as he released his Zubat.

"Zubat, use your supersonic attack to confuse that Fearow!" commanded Cameron.

"Zubat!" replied the bat as it flew up in front of Fearow and launched a bunch of sonic waves. Fearow managed to dodge out of the way and shot some sonic waves back at Zubat causing it to become confused and crash down onto the ground.

"ZUBAT!" cried Cameron as he picked up his poor friend in one hand while holding Slowpoke in the other, "I thought Fearows couldn't learn supersonic", he said.

"They can if they use a mirror move attack", said Brock, "Fearows have the ability to copy any attack that's launched at them."

"And it looks like it's gonna stick to its original harmful attack right now!" shouted Stella as Fearow started up its drill peck again. Everyone started running like crazy until Seymour threw out two of his Pokeballs releasing Clefairy and Clefable.

"Seymour, what are you doing?!" shouted Jenny.

"Protecting us", shouted Seymour, "Okay guys, use your light screen!" Clefairy and Clefable pointed to the Fearow and a huge flashing light started to appear causing Fearow to crash into something. When the light cleared, our heroes found themselves protected in a huge glowing dome. Fearow flew away crookedly along with a crooked beak.

"Nice work you guys", smiled Seymour as Clefairy and Clefable undid their light screen and hugged each other happily.

"Cameron how could you do something that dumb?!" shouted Misty, "Going against a deadly Fearow just to save one tiny Pokemon?"

"I just couldn't stand to see this cute little Slowpoke get eaten", said Cameron as he tickled Slowpoke's belly while it laughed, "Slow!"

"Misty's right", said Brock, "I really think it would've been smarter if you let nature take its course."

"You know", said Cameron angrily, "That exactly sounds like the time when Ash got captured by Team Rocket and you didn't do a thing to help him!" Misty, Brock, and Stella hung their heads down in shame.

"You just had to bring that up!" sighed Misty.

"You're right Cameron", said Stella, "I just wish we had the morals that you and Ash have. That way we'd be better friends and better people."

"Let's all make a pact to be better friends and help each other out and those who need help along the way", said Brock.

"Agreed!" said the group as they all joined hands in friendship. Then Cameron looked at the new friend he had in his hand. "Would you like to come with me?" asked Cameron.

"Slowpoke!" it said in a slow happy voice.

"Cameron, it can't come with you", said Misty, "It has to get into the ocean and swim around for a year. Otherwise it'll stay that puny size forever."

"But we've become friends", said Cameron.

"I'm afraid Misty's right Cameron", said Seymour, "You wouldn't want to deny a Slowpoke's rightful size would you?"

"Trust me", said Misty, "I'm a water Pokemon expert. I know about this stuff."

"Oh, okay", sighed Cameron as he bent down to put Slowpoke back onto the beach. But it wouldn't let go of Cameron's wrist for its tail was wrapped around it tight.

"Sorry, I'd like for you to come with me but I can't", said Cameron as he pried Slowpoke off his wrist and faced it to the ocean. "The sea is where you rightfully belong along with your brothers and sisters."

"Slowpoke!" it said in a sad little voice. Cameron started to feel sad too as he stared at the tiny Slowpoke, but Misty turned him around and made him walk off along with the rest of the group. "Just keep walking", said Misty. "And let it get on with its natural Slowpoke life."

As they continued walking Sandy turned around, then tugged Cameron's pants leg and replied, "Shrew!"

"What is it Sandy?" asked Cameron, "They all turned around found the Slowpoke following after them pretty fast.

"That Slowpoke sure isn't living up to its name", said Stella.

"I guess this means it really does want to come with me", smiled Cameron.

"But it can't", protested Misty, "It won't be healthy if it stays that small size. This is why humans should not be around when Slowpokes hatch!"

"Cameron, you have to convince Slowpoke that it'll be more comfortable in the water", said Brock, "Put it into the water and let it feel the coolness and pure saltiness of its natural habitat."

"Oh, okay", sighed Cameron as he picked up Slowpoke and put it into the shallow end of the water. It seemed to like the stuff a lot and started swimming around in it like a pro.

"You did the right thing Cameron", said Misty as she placed her hands on his shoulders. "Now let's all get away from this spot fast before Slowpoke tries to follow us again."

This time everyone started to run across the beach hoping the Slowpoke wouldn't try to follow again. But Cameron wished it would. Just then he heard everyone scream. He and Sandy turned around and found a huge pit in place of their friends. They rushed over and found everyone lying in the deep pit piled on top of each other.

"Are you guys all right?" asked Cameron.

"We're in a dirty pit and I'm at the bottom of this pile!" grumbled Misty, "What do you think?!"

"Uh oh", said Brock, "Whenever any of us lands in a pit, that means only one thing!"

"I was afraid you were going to say that", said Cameron knowing what usually comes next whenever someone falls into a pit on the TV show. Just then, he and Sandy saw something digging a path right toward them. Then Meowth popped out from the sand wearing fake rabbit ears and holding a carrot.

"Eh" he said while crunching the carrot, "How's it hangin' Nurse?" Then Meowth got kicked into the sky from Reiko's black boot.

"Prepare for trouble", said Reiko as she did a double back flip from out of the ground.

"And make it, COUGH, COUGH, HACK, COUGH", said James as he emerged from the ground coughing up sand and old fishbones.

Reiko: "To protect the world from devastation!"  
James: "To unite all peoples within our nation!"  
Reiko: "To denounce the evils of truth and love!"  
James: "To extend our reach to the stars above!"  
Reiko: "For my glorious Queen Jessie!"  
James: "And King James!"  
Reiko: "Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"  
James: "Surrender now or prepare to fight!"

"MEEOOOWWTHHH, THHHAAAT'S RIIIGGGHHT!" shouted Meowth as he landed onto the sand with his carrot stuck to his nose like a snowman.

"I guess you were right James-san", said Reiko bowing to him, "The classic hidden pit trap may be old and unimaginative, but it seems to get results."

"Yes Reiko", smiled James, "You should always listen to those who are older than you to receive wisdom."

"I'm only 9 years old and I've never received any wisdom from the older-  
than-me dimwit!" sneered Meowth. "Besides, you haven't caught all of them." And he pointed a claw to Cameron and Sandy.

"Get out of here while you can!" shouted Jenny from the pit.

"And leave you to get taken back to Rocketville to be punished?" asked Cameron, "I don't think so!"

"If he gets any more noble, I'm gonna get him a Ponyta's feedbag", said Misty.

"Like the Bellsprout that won't let tiny bugs escape until they're slowly and painfully digested, you won't escape my wrath either!" smiled Reiko as she took out a rope and was about to tie up Cameron. But then Sandy jumped right between them and started slashing Reiko's rope to pieces.

"Thank's again Sandy", smiled Cameron. "Shrew!" replied Sandy giving him a claws up.

"Why you upstart Sandshrew!" yelled Reiko, "You will pay for dishonoring me! Go Tentacruel!" she shouted as she released her Tentacruel that was looking even meaner than ever.

"Sandy, use your sand attack on it!" commanded Cameron.

"Tentacruel, water gun now!" commandaed Reiko. Tentacruel quickly shot a powerful jet of water at the approaching blast of sand dampening it along with poor Sandy.

"SANDY!" cried Cameron as he picked up his poor soaked Sandshrew who replied, "Sandshrew!" which meant, "I'm sorry."

"Like a hut made of mud that disappears when the rainstorm comes, there's no way your puny Sandshrew can protect you now!" laughed Reiko.

"But I've still got more!" shouted an angry Cameron. He put Sandy back into his Pokeball and then released his Zubat. But Zubat just fell to the sand still dazed and confused.

"Oh no!" gasped Cameron, "Zubat's still pretty wiped out from that Fearow attack!"

"My what a foolish Pokemon trainer you are", laughed Reiko, "Tentacruel, constrict that little bloodsucker!"

"Cruel!" said Tentacruel as it picked up Zubat with one of its tendrils and started to squeeze the very life out of it.

"Zubat, return!" shouted Cameron as he tried to suck Zubat back into its Pokeball but couldn't for Tentacruel's grip was very powerful. "It's all up to you now!" said Cameron as he took out his last Pokeball and released Oddish.

"Oddish, sleep powder now!" commanded Cameron. Oddish opened its tiny mouth and coughed up the biggest cloud of pollen at Tentacruel and Zubat causing them both to fall right asleep. Tentacruel then released Zubat so Cameron could pull it back into its Pokeball. "Nice work Oddish", smiled Cameron, "You saved Zubat and given it a chance to rest up its power too."

"Oddish!" said Oddish blushing.

"Tentacruel, awaken this minute!" ordered an angry Reiko who was shaking Tentacruel's tendrils trying to wake it up but with no luck at all.

"Give it up Reiko", said Meowth, "That squid's just checked into Slumberland."

"I guess it's time for the Rocket expert to step in", said James as he took out a Pokeball.

"Not so fast James-san", said Reiko as she put Tentacruel back into its Pokeball, "I still have one more Pokemon up my pants leg", and she reached into her boot and pulled out another Pokeball. "Go Kingler!" she shouted and released a gigantic crab with claws almost bigger than Cameron's body.

"What a cool Kingler", said Cameron.

"Kingler!" said the crab winking at him.

"Thank you", smiled Reiko, "I always give it a healthy diet of crabgrass and I keep its claws sharp by letting it play with my katana collection and.... Wait a minute!" she shouted, "I'm letting my guard down! I must remember to punish myself later for that! Kingler, water gun now!"

"KING!" said Kingler as it started to squirt some water at Oddish. But Oddish just absorbed it all making it look a lot stronger.

"Thank's" said Cameron, "You saved me the trouble of having to water Oddish today."

"King, Kingler", smiled Kingler which meant, "Your welcome."

"Yes Kingler, you should be rewarded", smiled Reiko, "How about with a frozen vegetable dinner? Ice beam that Oddish!"

"KING!" said Kingler as it shot a cold beam from its mouth and hit Oddish, freezing it in a block of ice.

"ODDISH!" cried Cameron as he tried to pick up the frozen Pokemon but couldn't for it was too cold to touch with his bare hands. He was forced to suck Oddish back into its Pokeball.

"Go on boy", laughed Reiko, "Send out your next Pokemon. Kingler's just getting started!"

"But I don't have anymore left", said Cameron.

"Then in that case, it's time for you to come with us prisoner!" smiled Reiko as she took out some more rope. Just then the little Slowpoke jumped right in front of Cameron and shouted, "Slowpoke, Slowpoke!"

"What's it saying Meowth?" asked James.

"It's saying, please don't hurt my mamma!" said Meowth who was laughing to death.

"That little pipsqueak thinks the boy's its mother?" said James who was also laughing out loud. "I wonder who the father is?!"

"I'm a mother?!" gasped Cameron looking down at the Slowpoke getting ready to defend its parental unit.

"HA HA HA!" laughed Reiko and Kingler at the same time. "So the tiny but tough Pokemon is gonna fight to save its poor weak mother!" laughed Reiko, "Kingler, remove this pest if you would." Kingler just flicked Slowpoke away with its claw causing it to roll into a nearby post and hit its head.

"How could you?" cried Cameron, "It was just born today!"

"It's the way nature works", said Reiko, "The big and strong must always triumph over the small and weak! And now I'm going to demonstrate it again by using you and me!" She grabbed Cameron by the shirt and was about to slug him hard until they heard an angry voice shout, "SLOWPOKE!!!!" They saw Slowpoke approaching Reiko slowly while huge question marks were flashing all around it.

"What on Earth is it doing?" asked Reiko as she let go of Cameron.

"I think that's Slowpoke's amnesia", said Cameron. "It uses amnesia to forget its own pain and launch an even powerful attack."

"Well we won't give that slow one a chance", grumbled Reiko, "Kingler, bubble attack now!"

"KING!" shouted Kingler as it started shooting a horde of bubbles at Slowpoke. But Slowpoke started to glow a strange color and some the bubbles started to merge into one big bubble bouncing back to Kingler and Reiko sealing them both in.

"What is the meaning of this?!" shouted Reiko as the bubble started to bounce up and down like crazy.

"That must be Slowpoke's confusion attack", smiled Cameron, "Now you're all in for it!" Then the rest of Kingler's bubbles formed into another huge bubble and started to bounce right at James and Meowth sealing them both in while bouncing them around as well.

"For once I wish someone would actually burst my bubble!" shouted Meowth.

"At least we'll stay fresh for a while", said James. Then both bubbles started to bounce off into the horizon.

"It looks like Team Rocket's bouncing off again!" they all shouted.

"Thank you Slowpoke", smiled Cameron as he picked up his friend, "I would've been Rocket chow if you hadn't come along."

"Slow" replied the happy Slowpoke wrapping its tail around Cameron's finger again.

"Hey Cameron, way to go!" shouted Brock as he and the others emerged from the pit thanks to his Onix.

"You've handled that newborn Slowpoke very nicely", smiled Stella, "I'm very impressed."

"And did I just hear Meowth say that Slowpoke thinks you're its mother?" laughed Misty, "That's rich!"

"Just like how Togepi thinks you're its mother too?" asked Brock.

"Well I guess I'm rich too!" said Misty while sweating. "But you're still going to have to let it go back into the water Cameron, otherwise you won't have it for long."

"I just wish there was some other way", said Cameron sadly. Just then Slowpoke started to grow really fast. Cameron now had to hold it with both hands for now it was the size of a dog, the proper size that all full-grown Slowpokes should be.

"Hey, you're all grown up now!" said Cameron surprised, but happy.

"Slowpoke!" said Slowpoke in a deeper voice.

"Kids sure grow up fast these days", said Jenny.

"I guess defeating that high-level Kingler gave Slowpoke enough experience points for it to grow up into a full sized one", said Seymour.

"Well that changes everything!" smiled Misty, "Slowpoke can now be your Pokemon Cameron."

"Really for truly?" asked Cameron smiling at the Pokemon he was holding.

"Now that it's a full sized Slowpoke, it doesn't need to swim around in the ocean", said Misty, "I'm now happy to say that it can come along with you!"

"Thank you Misty" smiled Cameron and then looked at his new Pokemon. "Did you hear that Slowpoke?" he asked, "You can now finally come with me? What do you say?"

"Slowpoke!" it said happily.

"I think it just called you Mamma", said Brock.

"Uh, listen Slowpoke", said Cameron nicely, "I really appreciate your affection, but I'm not your mother. I'd prefer you think of me as your trainer and friend."

"Slowpoke!" it replied in the same tone.

"I believe that still means Mamma", giggled Misty.

"That's okay", smiled Cameron, "I'm just happy to have it on my team. Hey guys, come on out and meet the newest member." He took out all three of his Pokeballs and released his Pokemon who weren't looking so hot. Zubat was still sleeping, Oddish was still frozen, and Sandy was still terribly damp and crumbly.

"Oh no, I forgot!" gasped Cameron, "We've gotta get them to the nearest Pokemon center!"

"Wait, I see one about a mile ahead!" said Jenny, "In Cerulean City. Let's hurry everyone!"

So Cameron called back all three of his injured Pokemon, put Slowpoke inside its very own Pokeball, and the six humans rushed off to Cerulean City while Seymour started up a poem.

"A boy met a Slowpoke, so tiny, so frail.  
He wanted to own it, but that could not prevail.  
It had to go to the sea so it could grow big and strong.  
So the poor boy had to tell the Slowpoke, "So long."  
But the Slowpoke would not give up on its newfound friend.  
It followed and protected him right to the end.  
And because that little Slowpoke had a great big heart,  
It grew for the boy so their friendship could start."

"Very weird!" whispered Stella.

Jenny just giggled.

TO BE CONTINUED 


	7. Pokemon Pool Party

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 7

Pokemon Pool Party

Cameron and his friends were now at the Cerulean City Pokemon center where Cameron was getting his Pokemon healed from that tough battle from the previous chapter.

"Hi", said Cameron as he approached Nurse Joy, "Can you please heal my Pokemon for me?"

"Why of course young man", smiled Joy as she took the four Pokeballs from Cameron and opened them up. She was outraged when she saw the wet Sandshrew, frozen Oddish, sleeping Zubat, and the Slowpoke that looked all right but still had a clueless expression on his face.

"How could you let your Pokemon get in these conditions you irresponsible trainer?!" scolded Joy. Cameron started to feel pretty small as Joy's voice was growing even louder. He always felt that way whenever he watched Ash get lectured by a Nurse Joy, but experiencing it himself was just as bad.

"Please go easy on him Joy", said Misty, "He just had a run in with Team Rocket today."

"Misty?!" asked Joy as she leapt across the desk and hugged her. "Is that you?! IT IS!!! Oh, it's so great to see you again!"

"You know each other?" asked Cameron.

"Yes we do", smiled Misty, "I was born in Cerulean City and I always came to this Nurse joy whenever my Pokemon got hurt."

"That's right", smiled Joy, "And how is your Goldeen doing these days?"

"I don't have a Goldeen anymore", said Misty, "Because it evolved into a Seaking", and she released the big fat fish with a huge horn on its head.

"My, that's some catch", said Joy, "And looking at you, I bet guys everywhere are saying the same thing." Misty smiled on the outside, but frowned on the inside thinking about one certain guy.

"But tell me", asked Joy concerned, "How did you get back here? I've heard on the news five years ago that you were trapped in a Rocket controlled town. I was terribly worried about you and so were your sisters."

"My sisters were worried?!" asked Misty shocked, "Maybe they do care about me after all. Well anyway", continued Misty, "Some of us managed to escape thanks to some of the ideas from our new friend Cameron over here." Cameron just smiled and blushed.

"Wow", smiled Joy, "I've got a real live hero in my very own Pokemon center! Just for that, I'm going to give your injured Pokemon the full class treatment. Oh Chansey, bring out the special stretcher."

"Chansey" said a Chansey who rolled in a huge stretcher with soft quilted sheets, Pokemon feeding bowls on one side, a drinking bottle on the other, and a transistor radio that played a collection of music from the Pikachu's Jukebox segments from the show. Chansey put each of Cameron's Pokemon on the luxury stretcher and rolled them off to get treated.

"Your Pokemon will be just fine", smiled Joy.

"Thank you ma'am", smiled Cameron kind of wishing he was the one that got injured so they'd put him on that stretcher.

* * * * * *

Our heroes had arrived at the Cerulean City gym that was owned by The Sensational Sisters, Misty's three older sisters. "Well, here it is", said Misty nervously, "It's time to see what's changed these past five years", she said hoping her vein, stuck-up sisters would be a little fat and wrinkly.

"Well you all have a good time here", said Jenny, "I'm going to visit my cousin, the Cerulean City Jenny, and see if she'll lend us another van."

"But what if Team Rocket comes back while you're gone?" asked Seymour.

"Don't worry", said Jenny as she released her Growlithe, "I'll leave my Growlithe here to protect you. And if things do get bad, Growlithe will let out a loud roar and my cousin and I will come running. Right Growlithe?"

"GROOOOOWWWLLL!!" howled Growlithe agreeing with her.

They all waved goodbye to Jenny as they stepped inside the gym.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this Misty?" asked Brock, "I know how much you and your sisters don't get along."

"Of course I do", said Misty, "After all, we're family."

As they walked through the hallways of the gym. They saw huge tanks that contained water Pokemon of every shape and size. "It's like being at Sea World", thought Cameron as he saw a Goldeen making silly faces at him and Sandy through one of the tanks. Sandy didn't take Goldeen's teasing too lightly and he started to slash up the tank trying to get at the wise guy fish with no luck at all. "No Sandy", said Cameron as he picked him up. She's not worth it and besides, if you do manage to break through that tank, all that water will make you mud again." As they continued walking, Sandy, who was still being carried by Cameron, looked behind him and saw the Goldeen sticking her tongue out at him while pulling her eyelid back with her fin. "SHREW!" he said making a fist at her.

"Look, there's Daisy", said Misty as she pointed to the oldest sister who was standing on a huge platform feeding fish to a Dewgong that kept diving out of the water. "Yoo hoo, Daisy!" called out Misty.

"Hey guys", shouted Daisy, "Like look who's here!" Her other sisters, Violet and Lilly, who were in the pool scrubbing their Poliwhirl's back, swam up to the edge and smiled with delight at the group.

"Hold on, we're coming down!" called out Violet. The three sisters were quickly running up to the group in happiness.

"Wow, I guess they really do miss me", thought Misty as she held out her arms waiting to be hugged. But instead, they brushed right past her causing her to fall flat on her face onto the floor. When she got up, they were all surrounding Brock.

"Hey, Brock, like it's so good to see you again!" smiled Lilly.

"Wow, like you've become such a hunk over the years", said Violet.

"Care to swim with us?" smiled Daisy, "We were just about to break in our new bikinis."

Brock suddenly turned red, while Stella turned green with envy, and Misty turned purple with rage. "Don't you all care that your long lost little sister has returned home after all these years?!!!" screamed Misty.

"Like chill out baby sis", smiled Daisy, "We're all glad to see you too."

"Yeah", said Violet, "We've been like, what's that word, eh, worried, yeah, worried about you all these years and we're glad you're back home safe." And they all gave her a big hug.

"Do you really mean it?" asked Misty.

"Like duh", said Lilly, "I mean we just couldn't stand the thought of being in a trapped town where no one from the outside world can see our talents and beauty. I must say, you're like probably the toughest Sensational Sister of us all."

"Really?" smiled Misty while tears formed in her eyes.

"Yeah", said Daisy, "Like the three of us inherited the good looks so you must've gotten something else." Misty started to glow purple with rage again.

"Like turn off the technicolor", said Lilly, "I say we should celebrate our tough little sister's return. You're all invited to an indoor pool party! Like what do you say?!"

"A pool party?! ALL RIGHT!!!" shouted Misty for the sisters had never ever thrown a pool party for her before. "Come on everyone!" shouted Misty, "You haven't lived until you've experienced a Cerulean City Sensation Sisters' Pool Party!" and she threw off her jacket and jeans once again revealing her red bikini.

"I don't know", said Stella, "Shouldn't we continue our quest before Team Rocket catches up with us?" She was more worried that Brock would go ga-ga for those three flirts if they stayed here any longer.

"Come on Stella", said Brock putting an arm around her, "I got to spend time with my family. We should let Misty spend time with hers. Besides, you already said that I looked cute in a bathing suit. I bet you would too."

"Okay Brockie, we'll stay", said Stella blushing.

"Oh dear", said Seymour who was nervously shaking his legs.

"What's wrong Seymour?" asked Cameron.

"It's just that I get very uncomfortable at pool parties", said Seymour nervously, "I burn easily in the sun!"

"But we said it was an indoor pool party", said Violet. "Like don't be such a geek!"

"Misty still has unusual tastes in boyfriends", said Lilly.

"BOYFRIEND?!!" grumbled Misty while turning purple once again on the outside while feeling blue on the inside thinking about the time they first met Ash when they thought the same exact thing.

* * * * * *

Meanwhile, Team Rocket was searching around Cerulean City for their escaped citizens. "It's like trying to find a needle in a Sandslash's back", whined James.

"Like the quarter you find in an old coat pocket, you should never leave any stone unturned or any house unsearched", said Reiko.

"Or any gum that happens to be under your paw!" said Meowth as he pulled some grape chewing gum off of his foot and started chewing it.

"Eeeeeyeeew!" said James and Reiko together.

"It's not like I'm gonna swallow it", protested Meowth, "So don't accuse me of being disgusting!" and he blew a huge purple bubble covered with dirt, a bandage, and crushed insect eggs.

"Hey, look over there", said James.

"Just as long as I don't have to look at Meowth", said Reiko. They saw Jenny heading over to a nearby police station. They all jumped into empty trashcans so she wouldn't spot them and go into arrest mode.

"That's the Pallet Town Jenny", said James, "That must mean the other rebels are nearby.

"How can you tell it's her?" asked Reiko, "All Jennies look the same."

"All you humans look the same to me", said Meowth.

"Just like the rebel Brock", said James proudly, "I too have studied each and every Officer Jenny of every city and town and I can assure you that's the Pallet Jenny."

"Well then why are we hanging around in these tin cans?" said Meowth, "Let's go spy on the fuzz." And they all closed their lids. Their feet suddenly stuck out of the bottom of the cans and they tiptoed slowly to the police station. There they listened to the Jennies conversation through the cracked window.

"Why of course I can lend you a van", said Cerulean Jenny, "Anything that'll help free Pallet Town along with our sisters and cousins."

"Thank you Jenny", smiled Pallet Jenny as she hugged her cousin. "I can't wait to get back to the Cerulean Gym to tell them that we got transportation again."

"So they're all at the Cerulean Gym", said Reiko, "We must storm the place as swift as a Vulpix."

"But first we gotta get those two little piglets out of the picture", said Meowth.

"Leave that to yours' truly", said James as he released his Victreebel.

"Victreebel, use your sleep powder now", but Victreebel just started to chomp on James's head again.

"Hey I don't like humans much either", said Meowth, "But you don't see me trying to eat their heads!"

Reiko just sighed and used her ninja-like strength to pry Victreebel off of James's head. Then she squeezed Victreebel's stems tightly forcing it to cough up a cloud of pollen that floated into the station making both Jennies very sleepy.

"YAWN! All of a sudden I want to fall asleep!" said Pallet Jenny.

"I knew I should've brewed up some extra coffee today", yawned Cerulean Jenny as they both fell asleep on the floor and desk.

"Excellent!" smiled Reiko wickedly as she and Meowth climbed through the window while James was tending to his poor mangled Victreebel.

"Vic, speak to me!" he cried, "If you're all right, please give me a sign!" and Victreebel did by biting James's head again.

* * * * * *

Back at the gym, everyone was having a great time at the indoor pool party. Cameron, wearing dark brown Bermuda shorts that Mrs. Ketchum had packed for him, was swimming around while his Slowpoke followed after him. Misty was sitting at the shallow end of the pool talking to her sisters who were sitting on deck chairs. Stella, who was under a huge sunlamp, was rubbing some oil on Brock's back and made him face the wall so he wouldn't gaze at the sexy sisters in their bathing suits. Seymour, wearing red and white striped shorts under his labcoat, was examining the buffet table that consisted of all kinds of seafood even sushi. Seymour couldn't really stand the sight of sushi, but Clefairy was by his side with a vomit bag ready just in case. Sandy could not stand the feel or even the sight of water. But the sisters did have a huge sandbox where Sandy and Growlithe were free to play around in.

"So are you still doing that underwater mermaid ballet I helped you with many years ago?" Misty asked her sisters.

"Like no", said Violet, "We sold the rights to Andrew Floyd Cobweb a few years ago."

"Not thee Andrew Floyd Cobweb?!" gasped Misty, "The guy who produces those famous musicals like Gengar of the Opera and Meowths?"

"The very same", smiled Lilly, "Like he was in our audience one day and he saw Daisy playing the mermaid and he just had to come up and buy the show from us. After that, we sisters just went back to our old routine diving show, which we enjoyed doing anyway."

"Like I knew Andrew would jump at the chance when he saw me performing the mermaid", said Daisy proudly, "If he saw like Violet or Lilly being the mermaid, he'd probably lose interest fast."

"And like just what does that mean?!" said Violet and Lilly looking dagger-eyed at Daisy. Then the three sisters started to have a cute little wrestling match in the water.

"Please Stella", pleaded Brock still facing the wall, "You gotta let me see this battle!"

"Oh sure", said Stella holding Brock's hands behind his back, "If you want the same treatment from me afterwards!"

Cameron was laughing at the scene while Slowpoke bobbed right in front of him saying, "Slow!"

"Do you want to race Slowpoke?" asked Cameron.

"Slow!" said Slowpoke nodding his head.

"All right then", smiled Cameron as he and Slowpoke swam up to the edge of the pool, "We'll do five laps around the pool, and I'll go easy on you okay?"

"SLLOOOWWW!" said Slowpoke as he darted off the edge and swam like a torpedo to the other side leaving a trail of bubbles behind him.

"Hey wait!" said Cameron as he tried to swim after him but was like trying to catch a greased pig. That Slowpoke may have been slow on land, but it was a different story in the water. When it looked like Cameron was about to lose, some huge white flippers suddenly wrapped around his body. "Dewgong!" said Dewgong and started to swim after Slowpoke at lightning speed taking Cameron with him.

"Hey, what's your Dewgong doing with Cameron?" asked Misty.

"Oh like Dewgong's just having some fun", said Daisy, "Chill out won't you?" Just then Dewgong sped past Slowpoke and rested its head on the side of the pool. But unfortunately, Cameron's head got banged sharply at the edge causing a huge cartoon bump to grow out of his head.

"Dewgong!" it apologized seeing the bump on the dazed Cameron and started licking it.

* * * * * *

"Like we're really sorry about what Dewgong did to you", said Violet as she was placing some kind of medicine on Cameron's head. "It still has a little bit of baby Seel inside."

"It's okay", said Cameron, "It didn't hurt that bad", and it was true since he was now a cartoon character.

"You like really are a good sport Cameron", smiled Lilly as she patted Cameron's bare shoulder.

"Our baby sis sure does have great taste in friends", said Daisy as she kissed Cameron's cheek while he blushed.

"Maybe I should get into the pool and let Dewgong bang my head", said Brock who was now looking at the girls. An annoyed Stella just covered Brock's eyes and did some noogies in his spiked hair.

"Gee, you've all become a lot nicer these past years", said Misty impressed, "In fact, I'm wondering if you all could help us?"

"Doing what?" asked Daisy.

"We need a cavalry that'll free Pallet Town from Team Rocket. Can you and your powerful gym-trained Pokemon be part of our cavalry?"

"You want us to help you?" asked Lilly. "HA HA HA HA HA!" laughed all three sisters together.

"This doesn't sound like they want to help", thought Cameron.

"Like why would we want to help a nowhere place like Pallet Town?" said Daisy. "We have our dignity to maintain."

"And why would you be concerned Misty?" asked Violet, "That town like isn't even your home. We'd think you'd want to avoid that place after what you went through."

Misty started getting steamed at her sisters' snotty selfishness. "You'd all want someone to help you if Cerulean City was taken over!" she spat out.

"Well it's not, so we won't", said Lilly.

"This isn't fair!" whined Misty, "Remember when I did that ballet for you? You owe me!"

"Oh no", said Daisy, "We tricked you into doing that ballet so we don't owe you anything!"

"You all haven't changed a bit!" cried Misty who was about to swell up in tears wishing she never returned to this place of torment.

Cameron finally had to speak out. "I challenge all three of you to a Pokemon match!" he shouted, "And if I win, you'll have to come and help us!" Misty suddenly looked at Cameron with amazement. It was like he was a knight defending a fair maiden's honor.

The three sisters huddled together and started whispering. When they were through, they faced Cameron with huge smiles. "All right kid", said Daisy, "If you win, we'll all be part of your little cavalry, but you won't get any CascadeBadges from us if you do!"

"It's a deal", said Cameron as he shook hands with Daisy. He was a little disappointed that he wouldn't be getting a badge if he won, but the freeing of Pallet Town and defending Misty's honor were more important.

* * * * * *

Cameron and Lilly were now both standing at opposite ends of the pool while a huge battle platform was floating in the pool's center. "All right Cameron", smiled Lilly, "You'll be battling all three of us one at a time. We'll each be using one Pokemon so that means you can use three. Like you think you can handle us Sensational Sisters?"

"Bring it on!" said Cameron as he looked over at Misty hoping he'd beat all her sisters and make her feel better as well.

"Like I choose Goldeen!" said Lilly as she threw a Pokeball and released a small fish with a horn on her head that was flapping on the platform. Sandy, who was sitting in the sandbox, recognized the fish. It was the same Goldeen that teased him today.

"Then I choose...." But before Cameron could throw out his Pokeball, Sandy jumped on top of Cameron's head and then landed on the platform ready to show that upstart Goldeen what for. "No Sandy!" shouted Cameron. "You're no match against a water Pokemon!"

He was about to suck Sandy back into his ball until Lilly shouted out, "Sorry kid, like once you've released a Pokemon, you can't call it back until it uses at least one attack!"

"All right", said Cameron, "Sandy, use your fury swipes and be careful!"

"SHREW!" replied Sandy as he tried to slash at Goldeen but couldn't for Goldeen was very slippery to even touch. She kept flopping around the platform in all directions out of Sandy's reach.

"Goldeen, give it your waterfall attack", commanded Lilly.

"Waterfall?!" gasped Cameron, "I think I remember this attack. And it's not pleasant to a ground Pokemon either!" Goldeen started to leap high into the air and then made a jet-speed dive into the water. Suddenly, a huge tidal wave started to appear right in front of the tiny Sandshrew. Sandy got so scared that it jumped out of the way right before the wave could hit him. Cameron then found a shaking Sandshrew in his arms. "Sandshrew!" Sandy replied nervously.

"I tried to warn you", said Cameron patting his head, "Next time, don't start battling until I tell you, okay?"

"Shrew!" replied Sandy.

"Like Sandshrew has left the battleground!" said Lilly, "Now you've got two Pokemon left to use!"

"And I've got the perfect thing for your Goldeen", smiled Cameron as he gently put Sandy back into his Pokeball and took out another. "Oddish, I choose you!" he shouted as Oddish suddenly appeared on the platform.

"Aw, what a cute face!" smiled Lilly, "Like it's a shame that I'm gonna have to mangle it. Goldeen, horn attack now!"

"Goldeen!" said Goldeen as she leapt high into the air ready to puncture Oddish with her horn.

"Quick Oddish!" commanded Cameron, "Use your sleep powder now!" Oddish complied and Goldeen was immediately put to sleep. Then Oddish hopped over to Goldeen and started absorbing all the water from her body.

"GOLDEEN!" cried Lilly as she took out her Pokeball and sucked Goldeen back just in time.

"This round goes to Cameron", said Daisy in a sour voice. Lilly just stepped back in defeat.

"Nice work Oddish", said Cameron, "But then Oddish started to glow very brightly. Everyone looked in amazement for Oddish was starting to evolve. It was now bigger with a bigger mouth that seemed to ooze saliva, little hands popped out of its sides, and the green leaves on its head got replaced with a beautiful red flower bud. It smiled at Cameron and said, "Gloom, Gloom!" Cameron took out his Pokedex and aimed it at his new Pokemon.

"GLOOM, the evolved form of Oddish", replied Dexeena, "The fluid that oozes from its mouth isn't saliva, it is a nectar that is used to attract prey."

"Cool!" smiled Cameron. "I've not got my very, uh very own, uh, AACHOO!" he sneezed wondering where that came from.

"Like bless you", said Violet as she came up to the spot where Lilly had stood. "Let's see if your new Gloom can handle this. Go Poliwhirl!" shouted Violet as she released a huge black frog with gloved hands and a swirl on its stomach. "Poliwhirl, doubleslap attack!" commanded Violet. Poliwhirl started slapping like crazy at Gloom without even stopping to take a breath. "GLOOM, GLOOM!" shouted Gloom waiting for its master to call out a command.

"AACHOO!" said Cameron again, "Let's see", he thought while sneezing, "What are Gloom's attacks? I know! Gloom, AACHOO!" he shouted while sneezing", petal dance attack, AACHOO, now!"

Gloom suddenly jumped out of Poliwhirl's slapping field and started to do a funky kind of dance. "Whirl?" asked Poliwhirl while scratching its head. Just then, a flock of pink petals suddenly shot out of Gloom's body and started to dance around Poliwhirl. The petals turned out to be extremely hard and they knocked Poliwhirl unconscious. "POLIWHIRL!!!" cried Violet as she sucked her Pokemon back into its Pokeball.

"Nice job Gloom, AACHOO!" said Cameron. "You can stop dancing now, AACHOO, You've won this round, AACHOO!"

"GLOOM, GLOOM!" shouted Gloom for it couldn't stop. It kept right on doing its crazy dance until it was getting closer and closer to the edge of the floating platform.

"What's wrong with Gloom?" asked Stella.

"I was afraid of this", said Seymour, "Petal dance may be Gloom's specialty attack, but it's also its dangerous. Once a Gloom petal dances, it can't stop until it falls down and hurts itself!"

"Or in that Gloom's case, splashes down!" said Brock.

"GLOOM, AACHOO, PLEASE STOP BEFORE YOU FALL IN AND DROWN, AACHOO!" cried a red-nosed Cameron. But it was too late for Gloom had already fallen in. "GLOOM!" cried Cameron who was about to dive in and save it. But then Gloom suddenly floated upward and was now lying on its back looking very over-watered.

"Gloom, AACHOO! Return", said Cameron as he sucked Gloom back into its Pokeball.

"Looks like I'm the last one!" smiled Daisy, "And like don't think I'll go easy on you just because you suddenly now have a cold!"

"But I don't have a cold!" said Cameron, "And I've still got one more Pokemon that I'm sure won't lose to you. Hey, I'm not sneezing anymore! I wonder why?"

"Like quit stalling and release your Pokemon", demanded Daisy.

"All right", said Cameron, "Zubat, I choose you!"

"Zubat!" said the bat flying high above the water.

"Well, I got just the Pokemon that'll wet Zubat's whistle", said Daisy, "Go Seadra!" Out popped a huge blue sea horse with huge spikes on its body.

"Seadra?" thought Misty, "Could it be?"

"Zubat, supersonic attack", commanded Cameron.

"Seadra, use your agility", commanded Daisy. Seadra started swimming around at lightning speed perfectly dodging Zubat's sonic waves.

"Now use your smokescreen", commanded Daisy. Seadra, quickly stopped and then sprayed a big cloud of smoke around Zubat. Luckily Zubat could see her way around in the dark.

Just then, Seadra took one look at Misty and suddenly stopped. It called out, "SEADRA!" to her. "I can't believe it!" gasped Misty, "It is you!"

"Zubat, go and bite Seadra while its distracted!" shouted Cameron.

"ZUBAT!" replied Zubat as she started to swoop down on the distracted Seadra.

"Seadra, pay attention!" shouted Daisy. Seadra turned around and looked in fear at the huge approaching mouth of Zubat.

"Seadra, hydro pump now!" commanded Daisy. Seadra quickly spouted a powerful jet of water right into Zubat's mouth. The hydro pump attack didn't seem to end as Zubat started to blow up like a huge water balloon and was about to drop down into the bottom of the pool.

"NO!!!" shouted Cameron as he quickly stepped into the water and caught Zubat just in time. He then pushed at Zubat's stomach pumping out all the water that got into her. After that, Cameron hung his head down in defeat.

"The winner and still beautiful, Daisy!" said Daisy blowing Cameron a kiss in good sportsmanship.

"Well it looks like you won't get any help from us Misty", scoffed Lilly, "So much for the boy who fights in your honor!"

"It's not fair!" cried Misty, "You sisters have always taken from me and gotten me to do everything for you! But whenever I need help, you're never there! You're all just a bunch of selfish, conceited takers!" and she started crying really hard while her friends came and comforted her.

"Aw, please don't feel that way Misty", said Lilly taking her hand. "Like, it's not that we don't want to help. We just can't."

"Yeah", said Violet, "Like this is an electric wall were talking about and our water Pokemon would be totally weak against it."

"Gee I never thought of that", said Misty, "I guess it would be wrong to have all these poor water Pokemon get fried trying to bring down that awful wall."

"The gym leader you'd probably want to see is Lt. Surge", said Daisy, "Like he's the electric Pokemon expert."

"Yes, that's right", said Brock, "Lt. Surge is a famous war hero too. I bet he'll want to get back into action if we ask him."

"Yeah, but it's a shame you won't be able to contact him though", called out Meowth's voice. Everyone turned around and they saw a huge submarine shaped like a Magikarp emerge from the pool. James, Meowth, and Reiko jumped out from a hatch on top and did their motto.

"Oh bummer", groaned Violet, "Like I told you it was a bad idea to install that economy sized drain in the pool Daisy!"

When Growlithe saw that Team Rocket had arrived, he started to howl for Jenny to come right away. "GRROOWWWLL!" it howled.

"Aw, save your dog-breath Fido", sneered Meowth, "Your pet policewoman ain't comin' for you this time!"

"And neither is her attractive looking double", said James as he pushed a button on a remote and a huge fishing net rose out of the submarine. Inside were both Jennies tied up and gagged.

"GRROOOWWWLL!" shouted Growlithe as he angrily shot a bolt of fire at the Rockets.

"Kingler, bubblebeam now!" said Reiko as a hatch opened from the mouth of the sub and Kingler came out and shot an army of bubbles at Growlithe putting out the fire and him with it. Pallet Jenny looked in tears at her poor washed up Pokemon.

"You let those Jennies go or I'll, uh I'll, uh, let's see", said Seymour trying to think of something threatening.

"Still the same old wimp as usual", said Meowth remembering the day he first met Seymour, "It's time this Pokemon does some people catching for once!" Meowth took out a remote and lots of fishing nets and rods shot out of the sub snaring everyone in the room.

"Nice catch Meowth", said James as he looked at the Jennies in one net, Cameron and Seymour in the second, Brock and Stella in the third, and Misty and her sisters in the fourth. "We should take a picture!"

"Like the special in the fast food restaurant that expires when you wait at the last minute. We should be heading back to Rocketville before we savor our victory", said Reiko. Just then, they felt something banging. It was Dewgong trying to headbutt their sub to smithereens.

"Then again, victory can be savored now when absolutely necessary!" said Reiko, "Kingler, defeat that foolish Dewgong!"

"KINGLER!" shouted Kingler as it dived into the pool swimming after Dewgong but Dewgong was just too fast for Kingler. Everyone watched as Kingler and Dewgong swam around in circles.

"Now to escape while they're being distracted", said Seymour as he took out a Pokeball and released a turtle with huge furry ears and long furry tails. "Wartortle!" it replied.

"Wow Seymour", said Cameron, "I didn't know you owned a Wartortle too."

"He prefers closed up spaces rather than wide open ones", said Seymour, "He fears that his shell just isn't enough so I let him stay in his Pokeball most of the time. Wartortle, I need you to bite through all these nets. Can you do that for me?"

"Wartortle", said Wartortle as he bit through the net like Japanese noodles causing Cameron and Seymour to fall into the pool. Then Wartortle leapt to each net setting free all the captives causing them to land into the pool as well. But the Jennies couldn't swim for they were all tied up. Cameron and Seymour quickly swam up and untied them.

"My hero", said Pallet Jenny as she grabbed Seymour's head and kissed his cheek. Seymour could suddenly feel the water getting warm.

"Hey, our prisoners are free!" shouted James.

"I hate it when the big ones get away!" grumbled Meowth.

"At least one enemy isn't free", smiled Reiko as she pointed to Kingler who just caught Dewgong in its claws. "Kingler, give it your guillotine attack!" smiled Reiko evily.

"NO!!" cried the three sisters together as they saw their poor Dewgong about to be crushed to death by the scary looking crab. Just then Kingler suddenly released Dewgong while the sisters quickly dragged it out of harm's way.

"Kingler, why have you stopped?!" demanded Reiko angrily. Just then Kingler started to float up into the air unable to move its body. Cameron's Slowpoke and Misty's Psyduck rose out of the water and were using their disable attacks against Kingler.

"All right, nice teamwork you guys!" cheered Misty.

"Now how about teaching Kingler seismic toss?" smiled Cameron, "On them!" Slowpoke and Psyduck complied by making Kingler grab the Rocket's sub causing them to fall back down into the hatch. Then they made Kingler spin the sub around and around making the people inside very dizzy.

"Quick, where are the seatbelts?!" cried James holding on to his chair.

"We never use seat belts!" shouted Meowth, "We're villians!"

Then Slowpoke and Psyduck sent the sub flying out of an open window in the roof taking Kingler with it. "It looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!!!" Shouted the Rockets as they disappeared into the sky.

* * * * * *

That night, the sisters held another pool party for Misty and her friends for saving them all from Team Rocket. Seymour was in the shallow end having a water fight with Wartortle, Clefairy, and Clefable. Seymour then felt someone tap him on the back. He turned around and found Pallet Jenny with her hair down and wearing a strapless blue and white striped bathing suit. "Are you four conducting an illegal water fight?" she asked seriously.

"Well, uh", said Seymour nervously.

"Cause it's perfectly legal in my book if you have five", smiled Jenny as she dunked Seymour's head into the water and started wrestling around with him while he and his Pokemon happily wrestled back.

Growlithe was under the sunlamp trying to get dry from his watery battle while Sandy was happily playing in the sandbox right next to him. "Goldeen!" called out a voice. Sandy looked up and saw Goldeen who had just jumped out of the water. She was holding a bag of corn chips in her fins as a peace offering to Sandy.

"Sandshrew!" said Sandy gratefully as he ripped open the bag, nibbled on some himself, and tossed a couple in the air so that Goldeen could jump up and enjoy them as well.

Cameron and Misty were sitting at the edge of the pool watching Slowpoke and Psyduck having fun. Since Psyduck couldn't swim, Slowpoke was giving him a ride on his back.

"Those two get along just great", said Cameron.

"Yeah", sighed Misty, "I'm glad Psyduck's found someone that's just as clueless as he is."

"Hi guys", said the sisters as they walked up to Cameron and Misty. Misty saw that they were looking very humble.

"So you're all like heading off to Vermilion City tomorrow to ask Lt. Surge for help?" asked Violet.

"Yep, that's the plan", said Misty quietly.

"Like we're sorry that we can't come along with you", said Daisy, "But we'd like to give you some stuff that'll probably help. Remember the last time you visited us, you lent us two of your Pokemon to improve our ballet? Well we're giving them back to you." Daisy handed Misty two Pokeballs. She opened up the first one and out popped a purple starfish with ten points and a big red jewel in the middle.

"Starmie! It's so good to see you again!" smiled Misty as she hugged one of her original Pokemon. "And I bet this is my Horsea!" she said looking at the other Pokeball.

"Not exactly", said Daisy, "Instead of Misty's Horsea, out popped the same Seadra she saw today.

"It really was you I saw out there!" smiled Misty as she hugged Seadra who happily hugged her back with its fins.

"Yep", smiled Daisy, "Like your Horsea was such a great fighter that it eventually evolved into Seadra. It rightfully belongs to you."

"Thank you", said Misty smiling at her big sister.

"And this is for you Cameron", said Violet as she handed him a badge that looked like a teardrop.

"A CascadeBadge?" said Cameron, "But I lost to all of you."

"But you were willing to give up the badge to fight for our little sister's honor", smiled Violet, "Like that makes you a winner in our book. Congratulations Cameron."

"Thank you", smiled Cameron feeling happy that he now won two real gym badges.

"And take this too Misty", said Lilly as she handed her sister a beautiful blue stone.

"A Waterstone!" smiled Misty, "It's so pretty."

"Like we figured it might come in handy in case you find a really great water Pokemon you want to evolve along the way." Smiled Lilly. Now you definitely can't say your older and much more beautiful sisters never gave you anything!"

Misty was about to spout off at her sisters, but instead she smiled and gave them all a group hug. "Thank you all", she said quietly with tears formed in her eyes.

"It's our pleasure baby sis", whispered all three sisters at once. Then they picked Misty up, tossed her into the pool, dove in after her and started tickling her to death.

"HA HA HA HA HEE HEE!" laughed Misty while thinking that there's no place like home.  
TO BE CONTINUED 


	8. Giovanni the Cruel

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 8

Giovanni the Cruel

Cameron and his friends were back on the road thanks to the van that Cerulean Jenny had lent to her cousin Pallet Jenny. They were driving on a paved road at night that was right next to another beach on their way to Vermilion City hoping they could get help from Lt. Surge, the electric Pokemon gym leader. Jenny was at the wheel with Seymour riding shotgun at Jenny's request.

"Gee, it must get lonely living up in the mountains all alone", said Jenny.

"I'm wasn't really alone", said Seymour, "I once lived happily with my adopted family of Clefairies and Clefables until that Zubat incident five years ago. After that, it's just been my Clefairy and me."

"I noticed you also have a Wartortle", said Jenny, "They usually live in watery places, not high in the mountains."

"That was an interesting story", said Seymour.

"Clefairy and I were hanging around Mt. Moon.  
Hoping to enter that cave someday soon.  
Then one day we heard a loud yelp.  
We looked up and saw a Wartortle that needed help.  
It was struggling in vein in a Fearow's tight claw.  
It was the most distressing thing that we ever saw.  
Clefairy used her light screen and made a bright wall.  
Which made the Fearow crash making its prey fall.  
I came and caught Wartortle just before it hit the ground.  
With the Fearow no where to be found.  
Wartortle was so grateful it that it wouldn't leave my side.  
Now I have a new Pokemon to add to my pride!"

"What a wonderful story", smiled Jenny as she looked at the man beside her. Usually when she was near a guy, they would become suddenly afraid or intimidated by her for she was the law. While others just wanted to date or marry her just because she was a girl in uniform. But Seymour was different. He had a carefree mind that thinks of unusual things and puts them into poems. She just seemed very comfortable with him.

"Thanks Officer Jen, I mean Jenny", smiled Seymour looking at the lovely Jenny. He really wanted to ask her out on a date, but he didn't have the nerve. Back in high school and college he was considered a geek getting "KICK ME" signs pasted on his back, girls too busy washing their hair to even speak to him and he was the only member of the Pokemon lovers club. It was then, he decided to live up in Mt. Moon where the only ones he could trust and call friends were Pokemon. Now he was actually traveling with five humans while having a conversation with the prettiest one.

"Maybe you can write a poem about me sometime", smiled Jenny.

"Oh boy!" thought Seymour who had his hand in his labcoat pocket clutching on to his inhaler just in case.

Cameron was just admiring his brand new Pokemon. It was the Gloom that had evolved from Oddish in the last chapter. "That Gloom sure is pretty", sighed Misty.

"Gloom, Gloom!" said Gloom blushing.

"And I agree with, ah, with, AACHOO!" sneezed Cameron and he started to sneeze some more. "AACHOO, AACHOO! I just don't know what's happening to, to, AACHOO!"

"I'd better stop the van so you can get some air", said Jenny. Everyone got out of the van so they could all stretch their legs and let Cameron sneeze out in the wide open beach in the beautiful starry night. "AACHOO! AACHOO!" went Cameron while his Gloom followed him around.

"Wow Cameron", said Stella, "Your eyes are all watery and your face is bright red! You wouldn't happen to be allergic to anything would you?"

"AACHOO, the only things that I know I'm allergic to are perfume and flower nectar, AACHOO!" and then everyone suddenly looked at Gloom.

"Gloom?" asked Gloom wondering why everyone was looking funny at it.

"I'm afraid there's your answer", said Brock, "You're allergic to your Gloom."

"But I wasn't allergic to Oddish, AACHOO!" sneezed Cameron.

"That's because Oddish never oozed out nectar", explained Seymour as he pulled a huge blackboard out of nowhere. "You see Cameron", said Seymour as he drew a Gloom on the board. "Glooms can't help but ooze nectar from its newly grown flower bud. So it's very common for most people to sneeze or break out whenever they're near a Gloom."

"I think it would be safer if you'd keep Gloom in its Pokeball for the time being", said Jenny, "Until we can figure something out."

"I'm sorry Gloom", said Cameron as he took out Gloom's Pokeball. "I hope you understand, AACHOO."

"Gloom!" said an understanding, but sad Gloom as it got sucked back into its ball.

"Here Cameron", said Misty as she handed him a box of tissues. "I'm sure things will work out for you and your Gloom soon."

"Thanks Misty", sniffed Cameron as he blew his nose.

"Hey, look over there", said Brock as he pointed to a lighthouse that had no light at all shining.

"Where's the light?" asked Stella, "Is the keeper in there goofing off?"

"I remember that lighthouse", said Brock, "That's the home of our friend Bill, the Pokemon researcher.

"I remember good old Bill", smiled Misty, "He taught us all sorts of neat things about Pokemon."

"And he also appeared in my Gameboy too", said Cameron.

"I wonder why his light is out?" wondered Brock. "He always keeps it on so he can keep a lookout for that special Pokemon he's been looking for so long."

"We'd better go check on him", said Misty, "Come on everybody."

"But first, it's camouflage time", said Jenny as she pushed a button on a remote and her van suddenly turned to sand and fell down mixing in with the rest of the sand.

"Wow!" said Cameron, "That's even weirder than the vine covered van!"

"We Jennies have to prepare for anything", winked Jenny. "The only problem though is we sometimes forget where we've parked." Everyone laughed as they approached the lighthouse.

* * * * * *

They all soon entered the lighthouse that was very dark in the inside as well. "This should be called a darkhouse instead of a lighthouse", said Cameron trying to find his way around.

"I can't even see my hand in front of my face", said Stella.

"But at least I can still hold it my sweet!" said Brock as he found her hand and kissed it.

"That's my hand you jerk!" shouted Misty as a loud slap was heard.

"And that's my cheek", shouted an annoyed Jenny.

"You're not gonna give me life for striking an officer?" asked a nervous Misty.

"Clefable, use your flash to light up this place", commanded Seymour. Suddenly a burst of light filled the room causing everyone to rub their eyes while seeing dancing colored dots. Then they saw Clefable shining bright as a beacon.

"I certainly could use her in case my police siren goes on the blink", thought Jenny.

"Let's go up those stairs and see if we can find Bill", said Misty. They all went up the circular path of stairs with the shining Clefable leading the way.

When they got to the top, they found themselves in a beautifully decorated room filled with Pokemon paintings and shelves filled with Pokemon books. "Who's there?" asked a British accented voice, "If you're thieves, you'd better leave or I'll sick my Rattata on you!"

"That's Bill's voice", said Brock, "Don't worry Bill. It's us, your old friends Brock and Misty."

"Hi Bill, remember us?" called out Misty.

"Misty and Brock?" called out Bill, "Why it has been a while! Is Ash with you?"

Misty was about to sigh again until she stopped herself and said, "No, it's just me, Brock, and some new friends. Why don't you come on out so we can see you."

"No, I can't!" cried Bill, "Something terrible has happened to me! I can't face any of you!"

"Are you stuck in another Kabuto costume again?" asked Brock. "We can help you get out of it if you'll show yourself."

"It's far worse than that!" said Bill. "All right, I'll show myself. But you must promise that you won't be shocked an appalled at what you see." Everyone stood there waiting for Bill to come out from wherever he's hiding.

"EEEEEK!!!" cried Stella as she jumped into Brock's arms, "A RATTATA!!!! I hate Rattatas! Kill it!!! Kill it!!!" Everyone looked down at the small purple rat with huge fangs while Brock was busy gazing at the girl in his arms.

"You promised me you wouldn't be appalled!" said the Rattata in a British accent.

"Bill?!" thought Cameron.

"A talking Rattata!" gasped Seymour.

"But I thought Meowth was the world's only talking Pokemon", said Jenny.

"I'm not really a Rattata", said the rat, "Even though I have the body of one, I used to be a pure bread human named Bill."

"Bill, is that you?" gasped Misty as she bent down to examine the Rattata. Instead of having bright red eyes like all Rattatas are supposed to have, it had human eyes.

"Yes, it's me", cried Bill covering his face in shame with his front feet, "This is so humiliating!"

"Getting you out of that tiny costume might be a little tricky", said Brock.

"This is no costume", whined Bill, "I've turned myself into a real fur and fanged Rattata with no hope of ever being changed back!"

"How did it happen?" asked Misty.

"It's a long story", said a now calm Bill, "If you'd be so kind and get some tea bags, cookies, and cheese logs out of that cupboard up there, I'll tell you. I'd get them myself, but I've been vertically disabled."

* * * * * *

A few minutes later, everyone was seated around a huge table having tea and cookies. Bill was sitting on top of the table nibbling on a cheese log. Misty thought it was so cute, but Stella thought it was gross that a filthy Rattata was seated at a table with humans.

"I appreciate you all making the tea and setting the table for me", said Bill, "I don't mean to be such a terrible host, but you can see my condition."

"Can you tell us how it all happened?" asked Seymour, "I'm a scientist so I can probably help."

"It happened five years ago", said Bill.

"Uh oh", thought Cameron, "Another five years ago story. This must mean, you know who, had something to do with Bill's dilemma."

"As you know", explained Bill, "I've been fascinated by Pokemon so much that I try to make myself Pokemon costumes so I can learn how its feels to be like them. But the costumes weren't enough. I wanted to experience being a real flesh and blood Pokemon. So I invented a DNA chamber. A device that would let my dreams come true. First I placed my pet Rattata in chamber 1, then I stepped into chamber 2. I suddenly felt my molecules get pulled apart and sucked into the long tube that leads to chamber 1. When I felt my molecules rejoin, I stepped out of the chamber. WITH FOUR FEET! I looked into a nearby mirror and discovered I had the fur, ears, tail, and fangs of a real live Rattata! It was a most marvelous experience! I ran through mouse holes, found things I had lost for years while scavenging through seat cushions, and I even knew the Rattata language by heart! I had planned on merging with a Pidgey the minute I became human again."

Cameron remembered that Bill did the exact same thing in his Gameboy. He asked Cameron's character to activate the computer on the side. The minute Pokemon Bill stepped into his chamber, Cameron activated the computer and Bill came out the other chamber human again. "Where's your machine now?" asked Cameron, "Maybe we can help you reactivate it so you can become human again."

"Alas, I don't have it anymore!" sighed Bill, "Just as I was about to reactivate my machine, hordes of thugs dressed in black uniforms with Rs on the front busted into my lighthouse."

"Team Rocket!" said everyone.

"I hid under a chair and watched as those horrible Rockets turned over my things, searched through my drawers, and took whatever they thought was valuable. Then in stepped their boss. He was a mean looking man with dark hair, dark skin, and wore an orange business suit."

"That sounds like Giovanni to me", said Cameron.

"Who's Giovanni?" asked Misty.  
"Giovanni is the big boss of all Team Rocket", said Cameron, "I remember from the cartoon how Jessie, James, and Meowth would shake in fear whenever they reported to him. He sure knew how to put those 3 down with his insults and put downs."

"Anyway", continued Bill, "This Giovanni started to gaze at my DNA chamber and seemed to find it very interesting. 'This is what we came for', he said, 'I've heard rumors on the net that the famous Bill had created such an interesting device. Too bad he isn't here to watch us steal it from him. HA HA HA!' But I was there and I wasn't going to let them take my precious machine without a fight, even if I was a tiny Pokemon. I leapt right in front of Giovanni with my best ferocious face. I didn't want to talk because I wanted him to believe that I was a fierce wild Rattata. But he just smiled and sent his pet Persian after me. I ran for my dear life trying to escape the feline. And I did by running into a nearby mouse hole. A few minutes later, I emerged from my hole only to find my DNA chamber gone with no hope of ever becoming human again. And that's my entire sad story."

Everyone felt sad about the life Bill had to live these past five years. "Who'd ever thought I'd feel for a filthy Rattata", thought Stella.

"If I only knew where this Giovanni lives", said Jenny, "I can track him down and put that awful head of Team Rocket behind bars for life! I'd become the most popular Jenny of all." She said while fantasizing about wearing a golden badge that was even bigger than her body.

Just then they all heard some glass crack, they all turned around and saw two human shaped and one Meowth shaped hole right on the large window of the lighthouse. Then the forms of Team Rocket went right through them, but through the wrong shaped holes though, causing even more glass to shatter. Then James and Reiko did their usual motto while Meowth started sweeping up the broken glass with a whisk-broom and dustpan.

"Meowth, why are you cleaning up this place?" asked James, "We're here to capture some rebels!"

"Hey, it's for my safety", said Meowth, "You both got shoes while all I have are bare paws. That attracts blood thirsty broken glass!" and he dumped all the swept up shards into a nearby trashcan.

"Thank you my fellow Pokemon", said Bill as he approached Meowth, "I can hardly clean around here since I can't reach my vacuum cleaner."

"That Rattata talks!!!" shouted James and Reiko both surprised.

"WAAAH! That's not fair!" cried Meowth, "I'm supposed to be the world's only talking Pokemon! I'm not special anymore! WAAAAH!!!"

Reiko quieted Meowth down with her little mallet. "I suggest you do not be like the sorrowful Weepinbell and weep its eyes out." Said Reiko calmly, "If you want to be the world's only talking Pokemon, just destroy that one!"

"You're right!" smiled Meowth as he sharpened his claws, "Got any last words rodent?"

"Uh, bye!" said Bill as he sped into a nearby mouse hole. Meowth chased after him but ended up bumping his head against the wall causing a huge lump to grow right through the charm on his head.

"How did you Rockets find us?!" demanded Jenny, "I thought I hid my van perfectly!"

"It's was very simple", said James, "We were traveling through the dark sky in our balloon when all of a sudden we saw a lighthouse giving off a beam of light that looked too powerful for a normal lighthouse." Everyone looked at Clefable who still had her flash power on. "Clefable!" she apologized as she turned off her flash and the entire room went dark.

"Clef..." said Seymour who suddenly had his mouth covered by someone.

"If we all stay quiet, Team Rocket may not have any chance of finding us in the dark", whispered Jenny.

"Someone turn on the lights!" shouted Meowth, "I can't see my paw in front of my face!"

"I'd better stop those rebels before they escape in the darkness", said James, "Victreebel, sleep powder now!"

"James you fool!" shouted Reiko, "Victreebel won't be able to see who its attacking. It might put us to, to, sleeeeep, ZZZZZZZ!"

"I could use a little catnap myself", yawned Meowth, "ZZZZZZZ!"

"No Victreebel!" cried James, "You're supposed to put those rebels to sleep not my teammates! Can't you do anything right?!" Then they all heard Victreebel chomping on James's head again. "When will I learn?!" cried James.

Cameron found a nearby light switch and turned it on. He found himself and all his friends unharmed while Meowth and Reiko were sound asleep in a corner and James was kicking his feet trying to escape the mouth of his very own Victreebel.

"This is perfect!" smiled Misty, "We've got one of the trio right where we want him! We've waited for this day for five long years!"

"Now we can find out what they did to Ash, Pikachu, and my Mr. Mime!" smiled Stella. "Go Tangela!" and she released her Tangela.

"Go Growlithe!" said Jenny as she released her Growlithe. "Growlithe, sustain that Victreebel!" commanded Jenny. Growlithe quickly jumped on Victreebel causing it to spit out a nectar-slobbered James. Then Growlithe sat on top of Victreebel making grumbling noises threatening to hurt the poor plant if it made any sudden moves.

"Thanks for getting me away from that constricting plant life", said James.

"I have a much nicer plant for you to meet", smiled Stella wickedly, "Tangela, bind him now!" James suddenly found himself tied up in the strong vines of Tangela.

"Uh, I don't really hug on the first date", gasped James trying to get loose.

"All right James", said Brock sternly, "We want some answers and we want them now! What have you done with Ash?!"

"Ash?" asked James, "I've given up smoking two years ago and I've thrown away all my ashes along with all my old ashtrays."

"We're talking about Ash Ketchum!" screamed Misty, "We want to know what you and your friends have done with him five years ago!!!"

"Oh, you mean the original twerp", smiled James, "Sorry, even if I did know what happened to him, I still wouldn't tell any of you. My lips are zipped!"

"Tangela", smiled Stella, "Let's see if you can unzip James with your truth spore."

"Truth spore?" thought Cameron. Just then Tangela sprayed some kind of red pollen all over James causing him to go into a trance.

"I cannot tell a lie", said James in a monotone voice, "I chopped down my Dad's wooden leg with my little hatchet!"

"It works!" smiled Stella, "Now James will be able to tell us anything we want thanks to you Tangela."

"Tang!" said Tangela winking at her.

"Wow, I've never heard of an attack called truth spore", said Cameron.

"No one really has", said Stella, "Prof. Oak invented a truth spore TM just for my Tangela. He figured it might come in handy in case we run into one of the trio. And that day has finally come!"

"Now let's try this once again", said Brock calmly, "What have you done with Ash?"

"It happened five years ago when me, Jessie, and Meowth thought we caught a Mr. Mime", said James emotionless. Clefable then hopped over to James, placed her finger on his forehead and an image appeared in front of them.

"What's Clefable doing?" asked Cameron.

"She's just giving us a flashback so we can understand what happened better" smiled Seymour as he handed out bags of popcorn to everyone. James started talking while his words were being transformed into pictures.

START OF FLASHBACK:

Jessie, James, and Meowth were heading over to their boss's office carrying a great big sack. The door opened and there sat Giovanni looking pretty mean while stroking his pet Persian. "So if it isn't the Simpleton Squad", said Giovanni annoyed, "Don't tell me. You've destroyed something else of value to me. Well, tell me so I can punish you and get on with my rich life!"

"Oh no Boss", smiled Jessie, "We've brought you an extremely rare Pokemon liked you asked us to."

"Here he is, the one and only Mr. Mime!" said James as Meowth gave him a drum roll on a tiny drum while James opened up the sack. There in front of Giovanni was a Mr. Mime all tied up and gagged.

"A Mr. Mime!" said Giovanni who started to smile a little. "That's one of the Pokemon I've been missing from my collection. Maybe I misjudged you three after all. Congratulations." Jessie and James hugged each other with pride while Meowth made a face at the annoyed Persian while Giovanni studied the Mr. Mime.

"Very nice", smiled Giovanni, "I've always admired the curvy shoes of a Mr. Mime along with his round red shoulders, jester points on his head, and the tag that says, MADE IN JAPAN, sticking out of the back of his head and the.... MADE IN JAPAN!!!!!" He angrily pulled the Mr. Mime's head off and discovered that it was only a mask. He looked down and saw the head of a black-haired boy.

"You're no Mr. Mime!!" shouted Giovanni angrily.

"Hey, I only play a Mr. Mime on TV!" shouted Ash.

"Oh no, it's that brat again!" shouted Meowth. This time it was the Persian who was making faces at the poor Meowth.

"Uh oh", we're in trouble!" whined James while shaking his knees.

"Don't show fear in front of the boss!" said Jessie while hugging James's knees shut.

"I knew it was only in a fantasy world that you three nincompoops would do something right!" shouted Giovanni as he threw the Mr. Mime mask causing it to land right on Meowth's head making him look like a Mr. Mimeowth. "You three have failed me for the last time!"

"Oooooh, are you gonna give us all a magic potion that'll stop us from failing?" smiled James while stars formed in his eyes. Jessie just sighed.

"Just get out of my sight for all eternity!!!" screamed Giovanni as he pushed a button on his desk and the three Rockets fell through a trap door, slid down a long slide and landed into a dark and dirty room. They all looked around and found about 100 Rocket thugs wearing worn out uniforms, eating stale food, and looking very nervous.

"Hey, I've never seen this place before", said Jessie.

"We thought we knew where everything was in the boss's headquarters", said James.

"Welcome to the Rocket's execution room", said a skinny and dirty looking Rocket.

"We hope your stay here will be a long one", said another, "Unlike some of our other poor failures."

"Knuckles, is that you?" asked Jessie looking in surprise at the first Rocket. "It is you! I haven't seen you since the day you accidentally starched the boss's underwear with greasy potato starch."

"And Brusier, you're here too!" gasped James staring at the other Rocket, "I thought you got fired when you tried to tell the boss to chill out."

"Firing is too kind a word Giovanni uses", moaned Bruiser.

"This is where he sends all the Rockets that let him down", wailed Knuckles.

"It looks like there are over a hundred Rockets in here", said Jessie.

"Yeah, Giovanni has a very short fuse", said Bruiser, "He goes through failed Rockets like a bag of potato chips."

"And who's your new Pokemon?" Asked Knuckles pointing to Meowth who still had a Mr. Mime's head.

"Oh it's just our ex-boss's ex-pet", said James as he pulled the mask off of Meowth's head. Jessie and James looked surprised when they saw Ash's hat sitting on Meowth's head. "Hey, I'm a Pokemon master!" smiled Meowth as he took out a mirror and admired himself while making a paws' up.

"Will you stop that?!" shouted Jessie as she grabbed the hat and whacked Meowth with it. "This stupid hat is a reminder of the little brat who got us into this mess! I'm gonna tear this hat to shreds as soon as I can find something sharp!"

"You mean like these?!" shouted Meowth as he scratched Jessie's face causing her to yelp and drop the hat. Meowth quickly slid by as the hat landed perfectly on his head. "I still got it!" said Meowth as he turned the hat backwards like they way Ash usually does.

"This doesn't look like an execution room to me", said James, "Where are the torture devices, the iron maidens, the guillotines, the electric chairs?"

"Just look down there", answered Bruiser while pointing down. Jessie, James, and Meowth looked down and saw a bunch of closed trap doors all over the floor.

"And look up there also", replied Knuckles, "They saw an alarm go off and a light that read in red letters, LUNCH TIME! Everyone held each other in fear waiting for something. Just then, a door slid open from under a Rocket and he suddenly fell through it letting out a loud scream and a splash. Jessie, James, and Meowth rushed over to the open door while the others backed away. There they saw the Rocket in a shallow pool of water facing a gigantic sea serpent.

"A GYARADOS!!!" cried the trio remembering their frightful experience with one a year back. Then the trap door quickly shut right before they saw the Gyarados take a bite of the poor Rocket.

"You see", moaned Knuckles, "We never know who's gonna be on the menu. I could be tonight's dinner!"

"Or I could be tomorrow's breakfast", wailed Bruiser.

"Or I could be today's tea time", said a British sounding Rocket holding an umbrella.

"Jessie", said James nervously, "Did I ever tell you that you were a marvelous dresser?"

"Oh no", grumbled Jessie while slapping James around, "We're not gonna go through those death row compliments like we did on that sinking ship!" She then stood up and shouted, "Listen up my fellow Rockets! For many years, we've served and cowered under the thumb of that miserable ingrate Giovanni. And where did it get us? Stuck in a room with stale food all over the place thinking about the future we were never gonna get even if we still worked for him! I'd say we find a way out of here, start our own Rocket empire and run it our way!"

"That's brilliant Jess", smiled James, "And you can be the queen and I can be the king! And I get to wear a pretty tiara!"

"And I can be the top cat of this new and better empire too!" smiled Meowth, "What da' ya' all say?"

"YEAH!!" shouted all the Rockets together. "To Queen Jessie, King James, and the Top Meowth. The rulers of our new empire!" shouted Knuckles.

"So your majesties", asked Bruiser, "How are you gonna get us out of this room of doom?"

"Give me a minute and I'll think of something", said Jessie. Just then, the alarm went off and the words, AFTERNOON MUNCHIE TIME, appeared on the screen.

"Uh oh", said Knuckles, "I wonder who'll be it now?"

"Our new queen", said Bruiser as they all looked at Jessie. Jessie looked down and found the trap door underneath her was open. She screamed as she fell through it. But James caught her arm just in time. She looked down and found the Gyarados sleeping in the water.

"Pull me up quick", pleaded Jessie. Just as James was about to pull her up, the trap door slammed right onto James's waist. He yelped as he let go of Jessie causing her to land right on top of the Gyarados's head waking it up. It woke up in an angry rage looking for the delicious thing that awakened it. Jessie ducked under the water and held her breath hoping it wouldn't find her. She did find a chomped up skeleton though. Which was probably the last guy that was Gyarados's lunch. She screamed in terror as she rose from the water causing the Gyarados to spot her.

"Jessie, I'm sorry that I let you go!" called out the front half of James, "And I'm sorry that I got your beautiful hair and clothes dirty too. Please don't beat on me in the afterlife!"

"Keep quiet you moron!" screamed Jessie, "Or Gyarados will spot you too!" But it was too late. Gyarados saw James sticking out of the trap door and it flew up getting ready to chomp on him.

"No!" I'm too wimpy to die!" cried James as he covered his eyes. Jessie quickly jumped onto Gyarados's tail causing it to fall back into the water. Then she released Arbok just as Gyarados rose and was about to attack our villians.

"Arbok, use your glare attack now!" commanded Jessie. Arbok's eyes started to glow a bright scary color as it glared at the even bigger serpent. Gyarados suddenly became paralyzed with fear and it stood there motionless.

"You did it Jessie!" smiled James, "You're my hero!"

"I'm your heroine", corrected Jessie, "And don't you forget it! Now this Gyarados will only stay paralyzed for a few minutes so we have to find a way out of here fast. And I think I found a way", she said as she pointed to a huge drainpipe. "This pipe looks like it's big enough for a human to pass through. We can all escape through here and hope it leads to a better place."

"Hey James, is Jessie fish bait yet?" called out Meowth's voice from above.

"No Meowth", called out James. She's alive and she's found us a way out. Take Weezing out of my pocket and stuff it into the crack of the door."

"Okie dokie", said Meowth as he released Weezing from its Pokeball and pushed it through the crack of the trap door that was opened by James's torso.

"Weezing, expand yourself", said James. Weezing then took a deep breath and started blowing up like a balloon causing the door to slide open some more. James fell out of it and slid down Gyarados's back like a slide causing him to land into the water right next to Jessie.

"Hey all you Rockets" called out Jessie's voice. "There's a drainpipe to freedom in this pit. I've paralyzed this beast so you can all slide down it safely. So come on everyone, your first slide to a brand new life starts with you!"

Everyone cheered as they all slid down Gyarados's back one by one and crawled through the pipe. Once the last Rocket went through, James sucked Weezing back into its ball and the trap door shut quick. Just then, Gyarados started to shake off the last of the paralysis and started to look angrily at Jessie and James. "Quick James", shouted Jessie, "We gotta split!"

"I just thought of something", said James nervously, "What if that pipe leads to filthy raw sewage? We could get killed if we get exposed to our ex-boss's old waste!"

"Would you rather become Gyarados's waste after it munches on and digests you?" hollered Jessie as she tossed her partner into the pipe and got in just before the Gyarados could snap at her.

Jessie and James crawled through the pipe and came across an open vent. They slipped right through it and found themselves in a room where Meowth and all the other Rockets were waiting for them. "Hey guys", said Meowth, "Look what we came across." They both looked around and discovered that they had entered the Rocket weapon and invention storage room. It was filled with nets, bazookas, tanks, jeeps, motorcycles, and a huge device that happened to be Bill's stolen DNA chamber.

"Acres and acres of items of destruction", smiled James as he danced around happily, "And they're all ours! I feel like a schoolgirl!"

"Well then why are we standing around here for?" asked Jessie, "Let's take all this stuff to our new kingdom!"

"And where exactly is our new kingdom?" asked Meowth.

"I've got just the place!" smiled Jessie as she stared at Meowth's new hat evily.

* * * * * *

Soon, a door exploded and a pack of tanks, jeeps, and motorcycles drove out of Rocket headquarters with Jessie, James and Meowth leading the way in the largest tank. Jessie took out a bottle of champagne and poured them all some. "To our wonderful new future as monarchs!" she shouted as they all tapped their glasses together. Just then, they heard a loud bang.

"Oh no!" cried James, "Giovanni's found out about our plan and he's blown his stack about it!" He opened the top of the tank and looked behind him. He found something purple and white flying out from the roof of the headquarters. It looked like some kind of new Pokemon.

"What do you suppose that is?" wondered James.

"Whatever that is, it's Giovanni's and that dumb Persian's problem", said Meowth as he popped open another bottle of champagne causing the cork to fly off into the horizon along with the Pokemon.

END OF FLASHBACK:

Clefable then stopped pointing at James's head and fell back down completely exhausted. "Why did Clefable stop?" asked Misty, "We were just finding out lots of interesting stuff."

"Clefable needs to rest up", said Seymour as he cradled his poor tired Pokemon. "That technique sure can take a lot out of her."

"But we still got James under the power of Tangela's vines and its truth spore", said Stella, "Let's continue with our interrogation."

"So James", asked Brock, "What has this old boss of yours done with Ash?"

"I don't know", said James who was still in a trance, "We haven't seen Giovanni or the twerp ever since that day."

"Well where is this Giovanni's headquarters?" asked Jenny?"

"It's in Celadon City", said James, "Hidden in a game center."

"Just like in my game." Said Cameron remembering the underground maze in the Celadon game center that lead to Giovanni's headquarters.

"Well what have you done with Ash's Pikachu?" demanded Misty.

"And my Mr. Mime?" demanded Stella.

"Well", continued James, but before he could speak, a small ball of blue goo hit James in the mouth sealing it up tight. They all turned around and found Reiko and Meowth who had just woken up.

"Spilling the beans can lead one into a life of empty franks and associates." Said Reiko while holding a slingshot she used to throw that goo ball. "Tentacruel, retrieve our teammates at once!" commanded Reiko. Tentacruel stuck out its tendrils and pulled James out of Tangela's vines and Victreebel from Growlithe's feet.

"So you rotten humans know about our old ex-boss and my so-called loving master, eh?" sneered Meowth. "Now it's gonna be a double pleasure rubbing you all out along with the stuff you just learned!"

"Not so fast", said Jenny, "Growlithe, take down attack!"

"Tangela, vine whip!" commanded Stella. Just as the two Pokemon were about to launch their attacks. Tentacruel managed to restrain them with its powerful tendrils. It then stuck out its other countless tendrils and nabbed all six of our heroes pinning their arms to their sides.

"I can't reach Sandy's Pokeball" gasped Cameron for his Pokebelt was covered with a thick tendril.

"Now we're all going back to Rocketville so we can show you how real villians interrogate goody-goods!" laughed Meowth. Just then a voice shouted out, "QUICK ATTACK AND SUPER FANG!" A bolt of purple flashed by biting off Tentacruel's tendrils freeing our heroes.

"Bill?" asked everyone. They all looked down and found Bill smiling with his fangs covered with green ooze. "Luckily, I taught my Rattata some good attacks before getting combined with him", smiled Bill. "But now I'm gonna have to brush my fangs for an entire year! YEECH!"

"It looks like Cruelly's gonna be useless now that it's handicapped", said Meowth as he stared at the tendrilless Tentacruel.

"Never underestimate the handicapped", smiled Reiko as she watched Tentacruel grow some more tendrils ready for battle again.

"All right!" shouted Meowth, "Cruelly, you take a rest and I'll take care of that tasty looking rat for you!" He shot out his claws and was about to pounce on Bill, until Clefable knocked Meowth down with her pound attack. She then started to wiggle her fingers starting up her metronome.

"Clefable, you need to save up your energy!" cried Seymour, "If you end up launching a weak attack, you'll be finished for sure!"

But luckily Clefable launched a powerful attack. Probably the most powerful attack of all, Hyper Beam! The entire room went dark and a powerful beam of energy shot from Clefable's body. It hit the Rockets sending them flying out of the lighthouse and off into the morning sunrise.

"TEAM ROCKET'S BLASTING OFF AGAIN!!" shouted Reiko and Meowth while James was still in a trance and his mouth was still covered with goo.

Clefable smiled, fell to the ground and went into a deep sleep. "Nice job sweetie", smiled Seymour as he sucked her back into her Pokeball. "You rest up now. You deserve it."

"And you did a great job too Bill", smiled Cameron, "Thanks for saving us."

"My pleasure", said Bill blushing. "So this team rocket took my DNA chamber back to their palace. I must go there and get it back!"

"Well, why don't you come with us?" asked Brock. "We were on our way to Vermilion City so we can ask Lt. Surge to supply us with an army that'll help us free Pallet Town."

"And it looks like we'll now be heading off to Celadon City too to find this Giovanni creep so we can find out what happened to Ash." Said Misty hoping Ash would be all right.

"All right, you talked me into it", smiled Bill, "And it looks like I won't have to pack me some clothes either", he laughed as he showed off his ratty bareness. They all laughed too.

"Wow, it looks like we have ourselves a magnificent seven", said Cameron.

"You mean a magnificent six and a half", whispered Stella who still couldn't stand the sight of rats. Even if this one was a nice guy.

"Just don't put me in a Pokeball please", said Bill, "I prefer being my own Pokemon."

"You got it!" smiled Cameron. Then Cameron, Misty, Brock, Stella, Jenny, Seymour, all placed their hands on top of each other while Bill leapt on top of Cameron's arm and placed his front foot on the pile.

"Long live the Pallet Rebellion!" They all shouted together.

TO BE CONTINUED

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Well it looks like our heroes have another new addition to their team. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. And those Rocket thugs, Knuckles and Bruiser, happen to be the same two thugs that terrorized the poor Johnston family in chapter 2. Knuckles owned the Koffing and Bruiser owned the Charmeleon.

See ya' all soon with another chapter! ;) 


	9. Electric Schemes

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 9

Electric Schemes

Back in the Rocketville palace, Jessie was lying on a nice soft table dressed in a white towel. She was getting her back massaged by a muscular Machoke. "Ah, this is the life", she sighed, "If only everyone in the world could live like this. Too bad I'm just a monarch who doesn't care about the needs of the common folk. HA HA HA!"

Just then, a Primeape came in rolling a table with a ringing vidphone on it. "It always rings when I'm doing something important!" Sighed Jessie as she got up and stretched her sexy arms. She picked up the receiver and pushed the voice only button. "Queen Jessie speaking", she said sweetly, "If you're calling to give me compliments, talk away. If not, hang up before I spray mace through the receiver!"

"Greetings my most royal, smart, and superior majesty", said a pretty Japanese accented voice.

"Reiko, is that you?" smiled Jessie delighted to hear from her favorite intern. "How are things going with our rebel retrieving party? Good I hope."

"Not exactly", sighed Reiko, "Like the lump that forms on your mattress when you try to drift off into a peaceful night's sleep, we seem to have a little dilemma right now."

"WHAT???!" shouted Jessie in a frightening voice causing Machoke and Primeape to hold each other while shaking.

"You might want to turn on your vidphone screen so I can show you", said Reiko. Jessie did and she found Reiko and Meowth staring at James who was sitting on the ground in a trance. He was still under the effects of Tangela's truth spore and was saying stuff like. "I always felt like I was a woman trapped in a man's body. I was completely devastated when I got turned down for the role of Cinderella in our school play. I even had 12 inch glass slippers custom made just for me!"

"What's he babbling about?" asked Jessie, "He seems more pathetic than usual!"

"Those rebels did something to him to make him do nothing but tell the truth", said Reiko, "And now he won't stop being truthful."

"There ain't nothing more useless than an honest villain!" cried Meowth.

"Say Meowth, did I ever tell you that Jessie and I are really dog people?" asked James.

"NOOOOOO!!!!!" screamed Meowth as he fell into a cartoon pit of despair.

"How dare you spit out our little secret!!!" screamed Jessie as she shook the vidphone up and down, "I don't want people to know I like dirty, slobbery dogs!!!"

"Please your highness", pleaded Reiko, "You might break our connection. I called you up so I can get some of your wisdom on what to do about this problem."

Jessie calmly set the vidphone down. "Where are you now?" she asked.

"Behind the Vermilion City Gym", answered Reiko.

"Hold on, I'll be right there", said Jessie as she turned off the vidphone. She looked over at the Machoke and Primeape who were still shaking in fear. She smiled and sucked them both into their Pokeballs. Jessie then went behind a screen and changed into her old Team Rocket uniform and admired herself in the mirror. "Even in peasant garb, I still got it!" Jessie smiled. She then went to a huge shelf filled with Pokeballs and placed Machoke's ball into the M section and Primeape's into the P section. Then she grabbed a Pokeball from the K section.

"Go Kadabra!" shouted Jessie releasing a strange looking Pokemon with pointy ears, a pointy snout with a mustache, and was holding a huge spoon. "Kadabra", said Jessie, "I need you to teleport me to Vermilion City right away."

"Kadabra!" said Kadabra as it suddenly disappeared out of sight taking Jessie with it.

* * * * * *

Jessie and Kadabra found themselves in Vermilion City where Reiko and Meowth were waiting for them while James was still in a trance. "Heya Jess", smiled Meowth, "Long time no see!"

"Greetings your majesty", said Reiko while bowing, "I hope your journey was blissful."

"I only left the palace a second ago", said Jessie, "But thanks for your concern", and she patted Reiko's head while she rose proudly.

"Oh, hi Jessie", said James, "Did I ever tell you that your hair looks like you've eaten a thousand pounds of spaghetti? And you do look like you've put on a few pounds as well."

"WHAT?!!!!" screamed Jessie as she grabbed James by the ankles and spun him around until he hit the wall of the Pokemon gym.

"Please your highness", pleaded Reiko, "Like the volcano on Cinnabar Island that could destroy its neighbors with one little irritation, you must try to control your temper or else there will be no Team Rocket left for you to boss around."

"Oh very well", sighed Jessie as he stared at the beaten James, "Kadabra, teleport James back to the palace and have the royal doctors treat him."

"Hey Jessie", said James who was trying to stand up with no luck at all, "I think the whole world should know about your secret desires like how you're a big fan of Jar Jar Bi...."

"Get him out of here NOW!!" shouted Jessie. A nervous Kadabra complied and quickly teleported away taking James with it. "Whew, that was close", said Jessie as she wiped her forehead with a handkerchief. "I hope he didn't blab about anything else, did he?"

"Well, he did tell those rebels about our old boss and about the nerve wrecking adventure we had when we last saw him", said Meowth, "Now they plan on going over to him to find out what he did with that brat Ash."

"Giovanni?!" gasped Jessie, "Well why are you both hanging around Vermilion City for? His headquarters are in Celadon City! We've got to stop them before Giovanni finds out what we've done!"

"We've heard the rebels were on their way here to get help from Lt. Surge", explained Reiko calmly, "We figured that we should wait here and capture them before they meet up with Surge."

"Pretty good idea", smiled Jessie, "But I've got something better. Let's take over this gym and let them walk right into our cute little clutches!"

"Are you crazy?!" said Meowth, "That place is packed with heavily armed war veterans with electric Pokemon! I still haven't recovered from all those Pikachu shocks!"

"Relax you fraidy Meowth", sighed Jessie as she took out a suitcase and pulled out some rubber suits. Two human sized and one cat sized. "With these rubber PJs, we'll be invulnerable to anything those brain fried soldiers dish out!"

"You're always so wise my queen", smiled Reiko as she started putting on the suit.

Meowth was wondering what Jessie's boots tasted like for Reiko always seemed to be kissing them. "So how did you know we'd be needing these rubber suits Jess?"

"Simple my dear Meowth", smiled Jessie, "You were in Vermilion City, the electric capitol of the world. So I figured that rubber suits would come in handy. And besides, it gives me an excuse to show off my lovely figure!" and she started posing in her purple covered suit and veil.

After they were all suited, Reiko found an open window on top of the gym. Jessie used her 11 foot Arbok to push them up to the window causing them to fall into a vat of Pokeballs.

"Wow, we hit the jackpot!" smiled Meowth.

"I can't wait to see what kind of Pokemon are in these balls!" smiled Jessie as she tried to open up a ball but it just wouldn't open.

"I do not think they are Pokeballs my queen", said Reiko nervously.

"Well, what are they then?" asked Jessie. She turned the ball around and discovered two angry eyes looking at her saying, "Voltorb!" All the other balls in the vat had the same eyes and were sparking like crazy. "VOLTORBS!!!" they all screamed at once. They managed to leap out of the vat just as all the Voltorbs exploded.

"Hey, what's going on in there?!" called out a girl's voice. Jessie, Reiko, and Meowth were on the floor looking up at two tough looking faces. A girl dressed in a red tank top with army pants and a guy wearing a black leather jacket also with army pants.

"Now who do you suppose these jokers are Shocker?" asked the girl.

"I don't know Electra", said Shocker, "But it looks like they've walked right into trouble!"

"TROUBLE?!!" asked Jessie and Reiko nervously as they got up.

"Look", laughed Electra, "You've got them so shook up, they might start crying for their mammas!"

"Believe me, it's not what you think", sighed Meowth knowing what the two Rocket ladies would do whenever they hear the word trouble.

Jessie: "Prepare for trouble!"  
Reiko: "And make it double!"  
Jessie: "To protect the world from devastation!"  
Reiko: "To unite all peoples within our nation!"  
Jessie: "To denounce the evils of truth and love!"  
Reiko: "To extend our reach to the stars above!"  
Jessie: "Queen Jessie!"  
Reiko: "And for King James too!"  
Jessie: "Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"  
Reiko: "Surrender now or prepare to fight!"

"Royal Meowth, that's right!" finished Meowth.

"So you're the famous Team that took over Pallet Town!" grumbled Electra, "I've been wanting to battle you for years!"

"Yeah", said Shocker, "Let's show these bad babes what military power's all about! Go Pikachu!" shouted Shocker as he released a cute little Pikachu. "Pika, pi!" it went.

"A Pikachu?!" cried Meowth as he ran behind the two ladies' legs. "Oh no! Don't let it zap me girls! Protect me!"

"Like the Omanytes that died out many years ago", sighed Reiko, "So did chivalry!"

"Pikachu, paralyze them with thunder wave now!" commanded Shocker. Pikachu let loose a wave of electricity but it didn't effect Team Rocket one bit.

"What happened?!" asked Meowth who just felt no pain, except for the fan that Jessie whacked him with.

"Haven't you forgotten about our protective rubber suits you flea brain?" shouted Jessie. "There's no way this wac and this wacko can stop us from taking over this gym!"

"Is that so?" smiled Electra, "Go Magneton!" and she released what looked like a bunch of magnets stuck together floating around.

"Go ahead and try shocking us", cackled Jessie, "We're indestructible to your type of power!"

"Oh, we're gonna shock you all right", smiled Electra, "Like this! Magneton, magnet power now!" Jessie, Reiko, and Meowth suddenly found themselves being pulled up into the air by a magnetic force. Meowth's metal charm on his head, Reiko's sword and metal throwing stars she kept hidden in her outfit, and all of Jessie's royal jewelry really attracted them to Magneton's power. They found themselves stuck all over Magneton.

"Talk about a sticky situation!" cried Meowth as he tried to pull his forehead off from Magneton, but with no luck.

"Magneton, blow them away with sonicboom!" smiled Electra. Magneton floated up to the open window that Team Rocket came through and blasted them right through it.

"Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!" shouted all three of them together. "Ah, I haven't said that line in a long while!" Sighed Jessie as they all flew off into the horizon.

* * * * * *

"What do suppose they are?" asked Misty as she pointed out the van window to the three flying figures in the sky.

"They're probably just three shooting stars", said Stella.

"Or maybe it's more Pokemon who've left the moon and are coming here to live on Earth!" said Seymour excitedly.

"Do you actually think all Pokemon came from the moon?" asked Bill the Rattata. "I kind of doubt that. I never felt any connection to the moon while inside this Rattata's body. Except when I get cravings for green cheese."

"Well I know you're wrong about the moon being made of cheese", said Seymour, "I know for a fact that the moon is made of pistachio ice cream. Who'd want to live on a gooey drippy place like that? That's why all those poor Pokemon decided to come and live here!"

"Yeah, whatever", said Bill wanting to end this conversation fast.

"Well, here it is, the Vermilion City gym", said Jenny as she stopped the van and everyone stepped out of it.

"I really hope Lt. Surge will be able to join our cavalry", said Misty. "His jaw alone could scare all those Rockets out of Pallet Town."

"I also hope I can win a ThunderBadge from him", said Cameron.

"Are you sure you want to take on Lt. Surge?" asked Brock, "I remember the last time we were here, the Pokemon center was packed with injured Pokemon that were beaten badly by Surge's Raichu."

"Even Ash and Pikachu were a little scared to come to his gym", said Misty, "I sure hope Ash is brave wherever he is now", she thought to herself.

"Don't worry", smiled Cameron, "Because I got Sandy here with me. And everyone knows that electric attacks don't effect ground Pokemon. Right Sandy?"

"Shrew, shrew!" said Sandy who was practicing boxing with his shadow.

"I wouldn't be so sure", said Brock who remembered the time Ash's little Pikachu shocked his big Geodude black as coal.

"I guess we should all go inside and continue our quest", said Jenny.

"You're coming with us?" asked Stella, "Don't you have an identical relative here you need to visit?"

"No", said Jenny sadly, "My second cousin who works here was one of the unfortunate Jennies that got trapped in Pallet Town. Oh, how I miss our yearly barbecues!" and small tears formed in her eyes.

"Please don't feel sad Jenny", said Seymour who was trying to find a handkerchief in his labcoat but had none in his pockets.

"Here use this", said Bill as he handed Seymour a small yellow handkerchief with holes.

"Thanks Bill", said Seymour as he handed it to Jenny who used it to blow her nose.

"Thank you Seymour", said Jenny, "This is a very interesting handkerchief. Not only does it look like swiss cheese, it smells like it too." Seymour smiled as he looked at Jenny and then looked down at Bill and frowned.

"What else is a rodent supposed to carry?" whispered Bill sheepishly.

* * * * * *

When they all stepped inside the gym, Shocker and Electra were standing right in front of them. "Halt!" shouted Shocker, "What brings you civilians into our gym?"

"If you're here to challenge our Lieutenant to a Pokemon match, come back later", said Electra, "He's busy having his breakfast of two dozen raw eggs and gruelshakes. He can get pretty steamed if he's interrupted."

"Never mind sergeant, I'm done already", said a gruff sounding voice.

"SIR, YES SIR!" shouted Shocker and Electra as they stood at attention while saluting. Out of the shadows stepped Lt. Surge. He was extremely large, extremely muscled, and extremely intimidating with his mean looking stare, blonde buzzcut, and a piece of raw egg on his huge jaw. Cameron didn't feel nervous when he saw him in the cartoon, but meeting him live was another story.

"Well, well, what babies do we have here today?" asked Lt. Surge as he looked at Misty. "Have you come here to get your pretty little baby face pulverized by yours truly?"

"Uh, no sir", said Misty nervously, "Don't you remember us Lt. Surge? I'm Misty and this is Brock. We visited your gym six years ago."

"Hmmmm", said Surge, "I've had many trainers come here and leave crying for their mammas for many years. So why should I recognize you babies? Are any of you here for a Pokemon match or do I have to court marshal you all out of here?"

"No Lt. Surge", said Jenny, "I'm Officer Jenny from Pallet Town and we've come a long way to ask you for help."

"Now hold on there a minute Officer", said Shocker, "If you want to ask any favors or even speak to our Lieutenant, you have to challenge him to a Pokemon match. If not, Sgt. Electra and I will get to work our electric magic on you."

"That's no way to talk to an officer of the law!" said Jenny angrily as she grabbed Shocker by his leather jacket.

"No he's right", smirked Surge while tossing a coin in the air and then crushing it to powder with his bare hand. "And besides, a Lieutenant like me ranks higher than a lowly officer like yourself girly."

"Not to mention another kind of rank", thought Stella while holding her nose.

Jenny was about to use her rage attack on Surge until Cameron stopped her. "Please let me challenge him", said Cameron, "That way we can continue this quest without any trouble.

"Oh all right", grumbled Jenny while looking dagger eyed at Surge.

* * * * * *

A minute later, Cameron and Lt. Surge were standing in opposite corners over a huge metal floor. "You know baby", said Surge, "That hat you're wearing reminds me of a kid who actually beat me a few years back. It's gonna be a pleasure knocking you and your Pokemon off of this planet!" Cameron just stood there nervously hoping his Sandshrew was tough enough for Surge's Raichu.

"We'll each use two Pokemon, no time limit", said Surge. "Go ahead and release your first puny Pokemon!"

"All right, I will", said Cameron trying to show no fear. "Sandy, I choose you", and he released Sandy on the steel floor ready for action.

"Aw, ain't that cute?" laughed Surge, "The baby thinks he can defeat my electricity with a ground Pokemon. I've got just the Pokemon for those types. Go Electrode!" and he released what looked like a Voltorb, except it was a lot bigger and scarier looking.

"An Electrode!" thought Cameron, "Those things can explode in just one second! Sandy, dig underground quick!" shouted Cameron. Sandy complied but his claws couldn't tear through the tough steel floor.

"Sorry little mousie", laughed Surge, "But there ain't no runnin' from a Pokemon match. Electrode, explosion now!" Everyone in the room quickly covered their ears for when a Pokemon blows itself up, it's quite a painful noise. Electrode made a huge BOOM and smoke filled the room. Cameron nervously waited for the smoke to clear wondering how injured Sandy would become. When he finally saw Sandy, Cameron was relieved that Sandy was rolled up in his protective ball.

"All right Sandy!" shouted Cameron happily, "What a great strategy! Protecting yourself and letting your opponent finish itself off."

"Sandshrew!" said Sandy doing a double back flip in triumph.

"Ha!" scoffed Surge, "Your Sandshrew may be smart, but let's see it protect itself from my toughest private! Go Raichu!" and he released a larger version of Pikachu with bigger ears and a longer electric tail.

"Don't worry Sandy", whispered Cameron, "Raichu's electric attacks won't harm a ground Pokemon like you. You've got this battle won already!"

"Shrew!" Sandy shouted at the smirking Raichu.

"Chu!" replied Raichu in an overconfident voice.

"All right Raichu", said Surge, "Give it your thunderbolt attack!" Raichu let loose a huge bolt of lightning at Sandy completely shocking it like crazy. "SSSHHHRRREEEWWW!" screamed Sandy who had never experienced an electric shock before in his life.

"Sandy!" cried Cameron as he saw his poor Pokemon on the ground all fried to a crisp. "That's impossible! I thought ground Pokemon were invulnerable to electricity!"

"You've made the mistake every little baby makes thinking their groundies can defeat my Raichu", laughed Surge. "Pokemon types don't matter here in this gym, strength is the only thing that counts and I'll show you! Raichu, finish it off with mega-kick!"

"Raichu!" shouted the mouse as it launched its huge foot at the weakened Sandy. But Sandy managed to dodge out of the way causing Raichu to fly out of the ring, ramming into Shocker's stomach.

"Oh thank God!" said Cameron as he pulled out Sandy's Pokeball getting ready to pull Sandy back in. But Sandy just leapt out of the way of the Pokeball's beam. "You don't seriously want to keep on battling in your condition?!" asked Cameron. "I'll just send out another Pokemon so you can..."

"Sandshrew, shrew, shrew, shrew!" explained Sandy for he knew there was no other choice. Zubat and Slowpoke would be totally weak against Raichu's electricity for they were flying and water Pokemon and if Cameron sent out Gloom, he'd be sneezing all over the place while all those mean human soldiers would just laugh at him.

"Raichu, get back in there and use your swift attack!" commanded Surge.

"CHU, RAI, CHU!" shouted Raichu which meant sir yes sir in Raichuese. It jumped off of the dazed Shocker's stomach and got back into the ring with Sandy. Raichu started throwing little swift stars at Sandy with no star missing his poor battered body.

"Sandy, you have to get back in your ball now!" cried Cameron.

"Shrew!" shouted Sandy shaking his head no. Then he started throwing his own swift stars at the stars Raichu was throwing. Everyone ducked in cover as little glowing stars started flying all over the place. One of them almost cut off Misty's pigtail.

"Which one of you two threw that star!!!" she shouted hysterically while Brock and Stella tried to calm her down.

"All right Sandy, blind it with your sand attack!" commanded Cameron who now had his confidence in Sandy back.

"Shrew", replied Sandy as it blew sand into Raichu's eyes causing it to rub them like crazy.

"No private!" shouted Surge, "Don't rub your eyes like a big crybaby! Get that walking sandbox with your thunder! That way you'll be sure to strike it wherever it's standing!"

"Raichu", cried Raichu as it concentrated hard. The entire room went black and about ten lightning bolts shot down on the floor making the room all bright and blinding.

"Oh no, Sandy's done for!" thought Cameron as he covered his eyes. "Why did you have to be so stubborn?!" Just then he felt something tug on his pants leg and saying a soft "Shrew." Cameron uncovered his eyes and found Sandy a little burned and crispy but still alive and smiling. He looked at the battleground and found Raichu all blackened and charred for it got hit by one of its own lightning bolts while Sandy was able to dodge them all.

"Way to go Sandy!" smiled Cameron as he picked up his Sandshrew while all his friends cheered for both of them.

Lt. Surge just sucked Raichu back into his Pokeball and approached Cameron. His big scary frown turned into a huge smile. "Congratulations kid", he said, "Your Sandshrew may be undisciplined but you've trained it well in combat. Here you go. The ThunderBadge is yours." And he handed Cameron a badge that looked like a red ruby surrounded by little lightning points. Cameron smiled as he gazed at the pretty badge while Surge and his soldiers saluted him. Cameron saluted back to them while holding Sandy in his other arm who was also saluting back.

"Well now that we've had our little Pokemon match", said Jenny, "Maybe we can start discussing the thing I wanted to talk to you about."

"Fire away officer", said Surge. And Jenny did explaining how they needed Surge's soldiers and powerful Pokemon to join their cavalry so they could free Pallet Town from Team Rocket. Electra almost jumped when she heard the words Pallet Town.

"Sorry, no can do", said Surge.

"But why not?" asked Jenny, "You are a famous war hero aren't you?"

"But of course", smiled Surge beating his chest. "It's just that me and my Pokemon had experienced harrowing torments and hardships during PokeWar II and I promised them that they'd never have to fight in another war again. Just engage in tiny Pokemon battles."

"But couldn't we make a small exception just this once?" asked Electra.

"Did I give you permission to speak soldier?!" bellowed Surge.

"SIR, NO SIR!!!" shouted Electra standing at attention.

"Maybe you don't want to fight because you're just a cowardly chicken who hates getting his spiffy uniform dirty", called out Misty hoping that would motivate Surge into coming with them.

Surge just giggled at Misty's cute peer pressure and pushed a button on a remote. A door opened from the ceiling and a pile of Voltorbs and Electrodes fell onto the floor just waiting to explode. "Let's see who're the chickens now!" laughed Surge. "These balls will go off in about ten seconds if you feel like you're brave enough to hang around here. One, two, three...." Counted Surge.

Our heroes sped out of the gym as fast as they could just as Surge shouted out "TEN!" Then all the Voltorbs and Electrodes popped open revealing candy in each one.

"The old fake Voltorbs and Electrodes filled with candy strategy", laughed Shocker as he scooped out a handful, "You sure are smart sir."

"And don't you forget it!" smiled Surge as he chomped down on 50 jawbreakers at once. Electra just stood there thinking.

* * * * * *

An hour later, Cameron and his friends were having lunch at the Pokemon center's cafe . Sandy, who had just been healed by Nurse Joy, was enjoying a huge deluxe plate of corn chips. "You deserve it champ", smiled Cameron as he was admiring his third badge.

"That Lt. Surge sure was tough", said Seymour.

"I sure am glad he was on our side during the war", said Brock.

"We really could've used him in our cavalry", said Jenny.

"I don't know if I could stand his beefy machoism every step of the way though", said Misty who was a little thankful that Surge wasn't coming with them.

"I don't know if I can stand seeing a Rattata on a public fast food place", thought Stella who was watching Bill sitting on the table next to Sandy enjoying a plate of nachos with all varieties of cheese dip.

"Care for a bite?" Bill asked Stella holding a half-nibbled nacho up to her.

"Uh, no thanks Bill." Said Stella trying to prevent herself from turning green.

"I'm going to the restroom for a minute", said Cameron, "Maybe an idea will come to me while I'm in there." And he walked off to the men's room.

Cameron had locked the door to the men's room and did his business in the nearby wall toilet. When he was done, he suddenly heard a small knock on the closed bathroom stall door nearby. Cameron curiously opened the door and was shocked to find Electra standing there. "What are you doing in the men's rmmmmph!" said Cameron just as Electra covered his mouth.

"Keep your voice down kid", whispered Electra, "I snuck in here because I don't want Lt. Surge or Shocker finding me here with you."

"But why do you want to see me?" asked Cameron.

"Because I want to free Pallet Town as well", said Electra.

"But why?" asked Cameron.

"Because Pallet Town's my birthplace", said Electra, "I'll do anything for my glorious homeland, even going against Lt. Surge's orders. I want to give you something that might be good against the Rockets' electric wall." She reached into her pants pocket, pulled out a Pokeball and threw it to Cameron. He opened it up and out popped a short creature with huge muscles, yellow fur with black stripes, small antennas on its head, and a long cat's tail.

"BUZZZZZ!" said the creature while little sparks were forming on its antennas. Cameron took out his Pokedex and aimed it at the Pokemon.

"ELECTABUZZ, the electric Pokemon", said Dexeena, "Normally found near power plants, they can wander away and cause major blackouts in cities."

"Private Buzz here has saved our butts countless times during the war", said Electra, "And I think he'd be a perfect addition to your team."

"Are you sure you want me to have him?" asked Cameron, "Didn't Lt. Surge promise all his Pokemon that they'd never have to fight in another war again?"

"Yes, but Buzz here is different", smiled Electra, "He really misses being in combat and I'd do anything to make him happy again. So please make us both happy and recruit him."

"You got it!" smiled Cameron as he stuck out his hand to the Electabuzz, "Welcome to my team Buzz." Buzz just frowned at the funny looking kid with glasses. He just stuck his finger at Cameron and gave him a small thundershock. "I don't think it wants to go with me", said Cameron whose hair was now sticking up like Bart Simpson.

"Don't worry, I'll straighten him out", said Electra, "ATTENTION!" she shouted in a tough drill sergeant's voice. Buzz stood at attention while saluting and let out a "BUZZ, EL, BUZZ!"

"Now you listen and you listen good Private Buzz!" shouted Electra, "Like it or not, I'm transferring you to Cameron's unit. Now you will obey your new commanding officer or I'll have you peeling and frying potatoes till you're nothing but a worn out old sparkplug! Got that!"

"BUZZ, EL, BUZZ!!!" shouted Buzz.

"Now get down on your fat fuzzy belly and give me fifty!" shouted Electra.

"BUZZ, EL, BUZZ!" shouted Buzz as he plopped onto the white tiled floor and started doing push-ups with only one hand. Cameron was shocked at the way Electra handled that smug Pokemon.

"There you go Cameron", smiled Electra, "I bet you won't have any problems with good ol' Buzz now. Right Private?" she asked Buzz while looking at him with tanks forming in her eyes.

"I just don't know how I can ever thank you for this", said Cameron looking at his new Pokemon.

"Just keep him in his Pokeball until you're far, far away from Vermilion City", said Electra, "If Lt. Surge found out I gave Buzz to you, he'd have me scrubbing his personal toilet till I'm old and gray."

"But won't Lt. Surge find out that his Electabuzz is missing one day?" asked Cameron.

"Don't worry about it", smiled Electra, "I've replaced Buzz with a stuffed toy Electabuzz. Believe me, Surgie won't know the difference!" Then she climbed onto the sink and pushed open the window above. "Safe journey to both of you", smiled Electra as she gave Cameron and Buzz a victory sign with her fingers. Cameron smiled and did the same as he watched the pretty soldier climb through the bathroom window and was gone.

* * * * * *

Meanwhile at the Vermilion City power plant, three figures were outside the plant surrounding a huge wooden box. A long cord was sticking out of the box and it seemed to be sucking all the power out of a nearby generator. "Perfect!" smiled Jessie, "Thank badness there's no solar energy here!"

"Yeah", said Meowth, "Are those saps gonna get a charge out of our latest scheme!" laughed Meowth like a mad maniac.

"Like the ground that plays executioner to a poor rooted tree during a thunderstorm, our clever little rebels will be in for quite a shock as well!" laughed Reiko but much more maturely though.

TO BE CONTINUED

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Well so far Cameron now has three badges and five Pokemon, but will Team Rocket's mystery box stop Cameron from getting more? We'll soon find out in chapter 10! ;)


	10. The Ferry Tale

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 10

The Ferry Tale

We Find our heroes down at the Vermilion City harbor where Cameron was telling them about his encounter with Sgt. Electra. "You mean you actually met a pretty girl when you just walked into the men's room?!" gasped Brock, "Why can't that ever happen to me?!"

"Are you saying that you'd rather have a pretty girl with you than me?!" asked Stella while grabbing Brock by his shirt.

"Oh no, my sweet Stella!" stuttered Brock, "I meant why can't I find the pretty you when I walk into the men's room?"

"Oh okay", said Stella as she let go of Brock, "But I'm keeping an eye on your hormones!"

"So Cameron", asked Misty, "Are we gonna get to see your new Electabuzz or are you just gonna leave it in your Pokeball until archaeologists find it?"

"Not right now", said Cameron, "I promised Electra that I'd only release Buzz until we're far away from this city."

"Well that'll be pretty soon", said Jenny, "For there's a ferry coming that will take us all the way to Celadon City."

"Did you say ferry?" asked Seymour nervously. Just then a Pokeball in Seymour's labcoat popped open and out popped Clefairy asking. "Clefairy?"

"No Clefairy, I didn't call you", smiled Jenny as she patted Clefairy's head, "I said a ferry, the huge boat that transports cars and vans across the water."

"Clefairy", said Clefairy now understanding it. She leapt back into Seymour's pocket and got back in her ball while Seymour stood there nervously.

"What's wrong Seymour?" asked Jenny, "You don't get seasick on boats do you?"

"Oh no", smiled Seymour trying to look relaxed, "I really love boats! In fact I've written quite a number of poems about boats!" But what they didn't know was the poems Seymour wrote about boats were all the times he threw up whenever he was on or near them. Even when he had a toy tugboat in the bathtub when he was two.

"Look, here comes the ferry now!" said Cameron as they saw a huge ferry pull into the harbor ready to let all vehicles on board. Our heroes got into Jenny's van and she drove it up the gangplank and to the sailor checking everyone in. He looked into the van and saw the Rattata sitting on the dashboard and the Sandshrew sitting in Cameron's lap.

"Sorry", said the sailor, "I'm going to have to ask you to keep your rodent Pokemon in their Pokeballs during this trip."

"But why?" asked Cameron.

"Because the captain believes that it's bad luck to have rodents roaming around a ship", said the sailor.

"But that doesn't make sense!" protested Cameron.

"Would you like to tell our extremely superstitious captain that?" asked the sailor seriously.

"Sorry Sandy", said Cameron as he took out Sandy's Pokeball, "I hope you understand."

"Shrew", said Sandy who really didn't want to stare at all that harmful water they'd be crossing.

"Come on Bill", said Jenny, "You have to get in a Pokeball too."

"Isn't it a shame", said Bill smiling, "I don't have my very own little Pokeball."

"You can borrow one of my empty ones", said Brock as he took one out of his backpack.

"Are you serious?!" shouted Bill, "I don't deserve to be in a Pokeball! Have you forgotten that deep down I'm still a human being?!"

"Sorry Bill", said Jenny, "But this ferry has rules, besides I hear that Pokeballs are very comfortable."

"And from what Pokemon's mouth did you hear that from?" demanded Bill.

"Well then, you can remain here in Vermilion City while we continue on our quest", said Misty, "And you may never see your DNA chamber again."

"And you'll stay a Rattata forever and probably get caught in a mousetrap one day too", smiled Stella.

"Oh very well", sighed Bill as he stepped into Brock's Pokeball. "But just remember, I'm nobody's Pokemon. Just my own!"

* * * * * *

Just as Jenny's van had boarded the ferry, another group was zooming by in their own van too. It was Team Rocket. "We want on board now!" said Jessie.

"Sorry ma'am", said the sailor, "But this ferry is all filled up. You'll have to take the next one which will arrive in 90 minutes."

"But we can't wait that long!" shouted Jessie, "I'm a very important queen and I demand that you let us on board!"

"Yeah, and I get god like strength by eating spinach", laughed the sailor. "Have a nice royal life your majesty!" and he closed the rail while the ferry was about to sail off.

"Nobody brushes off Queen Jessie and lives a normal life from it!" screamed Jessie as he clutched onto the clutch and sped in reverse almost knocking down a few citizens.

"Jess, what are you doing?!" shouted Meowth.

"Have you ever heard of Evel Knievel?" smiled Jessie.

"Oh no, you wouldn't?!!!" cried Meowth.

"You'd better believe it furball!" laughed Jessie as she pumped on the gas while Meowth nervously bit his claws while Reiko calmly filed hers with her katana. The van went at full speed right across the gangplank and flew up into the air. But unfortunately, it missed the ferry by one inch and the van went, SPLASH, right into the briny deep.

"May you rest in peace your royal highness", said the sailor sarcastically as he threw a dandelion into the water.

* * * * * *

Our friends were now out of the van and enjoying a nice peaceful ride on the ferry. They had bought some snacks at the snack bar and were sitting in deckchairs. Cameron was plopping some corn chips down into a Pokeball that contained Sandy. "Sorry you can't come on deck Sandy", said Cameron, "But I hope these chips make up for it."

"Shrew", said Sandy while making munching sounds.

"It's like feeding a Cloyster", said Misty.

"You okay in there Bill?" asked Brock as he cracked open Bill's Pokeball.

"Am I okay?!" called out Bill, "I couldn't be better! I never knew a Pokeball could be so luxurious! It even has a big-screen TV with HBO Family on it. You can hardly find that channel on regular cable systems!"

"Wow, I always wondered why most Pokemon never complain about being kept in Pokeballs", said Cameron.

"Say Cameron", said Misty, "Now that we've left Vermilion City, how about showing us your Electabuzz now?"

"Okay", said Cameron as he took Buzz's ball and released him. "Hi Buzz", smiled Cameron, "I'd like for you to meet all of my friends." But Buzz just frowned and turned his back on all of them.

"Come on Buzz", pleaded Cameron, "We all want to be your friends. Won't you give us, especially me, a chance?" and he placed his hand on Buzz's furry shoulder. Buzz only replied by shocking Cameron again. Then Buzz walked away from his jolted master.

"Wow", thought Misty, "That's exactly the way Ash's Charizard used to treat its master. I hope they've become friends now wherever they are. Or if they're even together, or if they're even still alive. Oh Ash!"

"I don't understand it", said Cameron as he got back in his chair, "Electra ordered Buzz to listen to me, but no matter how nice I try to be to him. He just gives me the cold and shocking shoulder."

"Maybe you're too nice to him", said Brock, "That Electabuzz is a military trained Pokemon, so he's probably used to people yelling at him."

"Brock's right", said Stella, "You've gotta teach your Pokemon discipline. I've got an old circus bullwhip in my backpack and I'll lend it to you so you can whip that powered punk into shape."

"Oh no, I'm not gonna treat Buzz or any of my Pokemon like that!" said Cameron, "It's cruel and inhumane! No Pokemon, or even a human being deserves that!"

"Oh sure, if you want to keep around a group of unruly Pokemon that won't respect or fight for you", said Stella. "Lt. Surge said so himself that your Sandshrew was undisciplined. He's always jumping into battle whenever you order him not to. And he won't return whenever you try to call him back into his ball. And when was the last time you left him and your Oddish, now turned Gloom, together without it sucking the very life from Sandy's body? Let's face it you little softy, your Pokemon need disciplining!"

"Hey, Pokemon are living things with feelings you know!" said Cameron angrily. "I remember how you mistreated your Mr. Mime, working him day and night without a break until he refused to obey you. You even tried to do the same thing to Ash!"

Stella flinched when Cameron brought that up, "I know I was wrong for what I did to my Mr. Mime and to Ash as well", said Stella, "But you still need to show certain Pokemon who's boss, or else you'll have a Pokemon that'll get you in major trouble."

Just then, they all heard a lady scream. Then they saw Buzz running for his life being chased by a lady who was whacking him on the head with her purse. "Hey, what you doing to my Electabuzz?" asked Cameron as he stopped the lady.

"So this little wise guy belongs to you!" shouted the lady as she started whacking on Cameron now. "Your Pokemon just gave me a thunder-  
pinch on my bottom! You must've trained it to do that!" and she started whacking on Cameron some more.

"See what I mean?" called out a smiling Stella.

* * * * * *

Back at the harbor, Team Rocket was floating in the water while holding onto their huge wooden box. "Now what, Miss Queen of Road Stunts?" scowled Meowth.

Reiko just bopped Meowth on the head with a passing Magikarp, "Do not ever gripe at your queen you insignificant little hairball!" shouted Reiko.

"Thank you my dear", smiled Jessie.

"Hey, I'm royalty too you know!" shouted Meowth, "That means I have authority to whack you with an even bigger fish!"

"Try it and I'll yank out your eyeballs", shouted Reiko, "Like the funny shaped corkscrew that pries the cork of life from its poor wine bottle!"

"Now, now, children", said Jessie as she leapt onto the box breaking up their fight. "As much as I'd love to see a ninja go against a Meowth, we still have to catch that ferry and capture our little rebel friends. Reiko, can you help us out?"

"It's always an honor my queen", smiled Reiko as she released her Tentacruel and Kingler into the water. "I need you two to swim all of us to that ferry as fast as you can. Can you do that for me, my queen, and this mangy Meowth?"

"MANGY?!!" shouted Meowth, "Why you little MMGLPH!" said Meowth for Tentacruel had grabbed him by the mouth and placed him on its head, along with Jessie and Reiko. Then Kingler picked up the box with its claws and followed Tentacruel who was rushing its passengers over to the ferry.

* * * * * *

Back onboard the ferry, Seymour was leaning over the rail not feeling at all well. "I gotta remember that boats are our friends", he thought, "For Jenny's sake!" and he started saying a poem to himself.

"You should not be afraid of a thing called a boat.  
It's a safe and sturdy thing that'll keep you afloat.  
When you have to cross seas filled with deadly Tentacool.  
Just swimming across it would crown you King Fool.  
So give praise to a boat for it will keep you from harm.  
And you might not have to worry about buying the farm."

"There, I feel much better now!" smiled Seymour as he started enjoying the ferry's scenery. Especially now that Jenny came into his sight.

"Hi Seymour", she said, "Are you enjoying yourself?"

"You'd better believe it", smiled Seymour, "Just stretching out my old sea legs!"

"That's wonderful", smiled Jenny as she held a paper cup up to his face.  
"Would you care for some chili?"

Seymour took one look at mixture and suddenly turned green. He covered his mouth, leaned over the rail, and made a loud, "BLAAAARGG!"

"Oh my!" said Jenny concerned.

* * * * * *

Team Rocket had finally reached the edge of the ship and was about to climb aboard. "Tentacruel, help us on board!" commanded Reiko. Tentacruel stuck three of its tendrils onto the sides of the ship and was climbing up carrying Reiko, Jessie, and Meowth in three of its other tendrils while dragging Kingler and the box with its remaining ones.

"Those rebels and that disrespectful swabbie are in for it now!" laughed Jessie evily.

"Hey, what's that stuff coming right at us at lightning speed?" asked Meowth as he pointed to something that was falling from the top of the ship.

"It smells like trouble to me", said Reiko as she sniffed it and knew what it exactly was.

"Did you say trouble?!" asked Jessie nervously as she was about to go into motto mode. But couldn't for a huge pile of vomit knocked Team Rocket and their Pokemon off the side and back into the water.

"We should teach one of our Pokemon that attack", said Meowth as he was about to lick himself clean but then changed his mind.

* * * * * *

Down in the ferry's sick room, Seymour was lying on a cot with his eyes covered with a wet cloth while Clefairy was rubbing his poor stomach. "Oh boy", he moaned, "I haven't thrown up like that since I was forced to dissect a Poliwag back in high school."

"Clefairy", said Clefairy trying to comfort her master then became quiet all of a sudden.

"And worst of all", he continued, "I did it in front of the most special girl I've ever met. I'll bet Jenny will now want to avoid me for the rest of this journey!"

"Don't be so down Seymour, I'm sure she'll still want to give you a chance." Said a pretty voice.

"Clefairy, you can talk as well?!" gasped Seymour as he removed the cloth from his eyes, put on his glasses, but found Clefairy on the other side of his cot. He turned his head around and blushed when he found Jenny crouched down next to him rubbing his stomach.

"Hi Seymour", smiled Jenny, "I'm sorry you had to go through that embarrassing moment out there. I just wish you told me that you get seasick on boats, then I wouldn't have offered you that chili."

"It was the only way", said Seymour, "If I didn't get on this ferry, I'd never be able to join all of you and my Clefairy, Clefable, and I would have no chance of ever seeing our missing family again."

"I kind of thought you did it because you just wanted to look good in front of me", smiled Jenny while posing sexily for him while winking.

"Well, I, I, I, I kind of...." Stuttered Seymour as he was trying to reach into his labcoat for his inhaler, but Jenny just grabbed Seymour by the collar and did her own mouth work with the surprised, but delighted scientist. He managed to find his inhaler, but just kept it back in his pocket.

"Clefairy", sighed Clefairy as she watched the scientist and the policewoman lie down on the cot together eyeing each other happily. Clefairy slowly snuck back into her Pokeball wanting to give them their privacy.

* * * * * *

Back on the deck, a huge wooden box was suddenly thrown on top of it. Everyone watched curiously wondering what was inside of it. Just then, a huge wave splashed on the box revealing Team Rocket.

"Uh oh", said Cameron, "It's time to prepare for trouble again!"

"You got that right twerp!" smiled Jessie, "And don't forget to make it double!"

"What's going on up there?" called out Jenny as she got on the deck with her hair messy and her hat crooked while Seymour followed behind her with his shirt halfway buttoned, glasses crooked, and lipstick prints all over his face. Everyone started looking funny at the two.

"Hey, you're supposed to pay attention to us!" shouted Jessie. "You weren't even listening to our glorious motto!"

"Sorry", said Cameron, "Say, where's James?"

"And why do you all smell funny?" asked Misty while holding her nose.

"You will all suffer for that!" shouted Reiko as she pulled out her sword while Meowth pulled out his crowbar and started prying open the box.

"Hey, I thought I told you three to wait for the next ferry!" shouted the angry sailor.

"We didn't feel like it", said Jessie as she pushed the sailor's cap over his face. "And don't get any impure thoughts about me either! I know what's always on you sailors' minds!"

"As captain of this ship, I won't stand for any of this havoc and chaos!" shouted the captain as he left his control deck and approached the two ladies. "Either you stop all of this or I'll have you all thrown in the brig!"

"Sorry Captain Kangaskhan", smiled Jessie, "But we really do have our little hearts set on a mutiny. Meowth, are you done yet?!"

"Does this answer your question?!" smiled Meowth as he finished prying off the last piece of wood revealing a strange kind of pointed machine with an antenna on top.

"Don't worry Captain", said Jenny, "I'll gladly put these troublemakers in the brig for you. Growlithe, apprehend those Rockets now!" But before Jenny and Growlithe could even approach them, they suddenly froze in their tracks.

"Jenny, what's the matter?" asked Misty, "Why aren't you and your Growlithe moving? Hey, I can't move either!"

"Neither can I!" shouted Brock. Cameron saw that every person on the ship was completely paralyzed. Even Cameron found out that he couldn't move as well.

"What have you done to all of us?!" he shouted.

"Elementary my dear brat!" smiled Jessie, "This device you see here is a thunder wave generator. It has the power to send out invisible currents of electricity completely paralyzing anyone who's even near it. HA HA HA!"

"But how come you three are still moving around?" asked Misty.

"It's simple like you", laughed Meowth as he held up his wrist, "These bracelets we're wearing makes us immune to our little gadget. And I'll show you!" He started curling up around the generator like it was a human's leg.

"Like the Koffing that's immune to its own poison, we're also immune to our own device of terror!" laughed Reiko.

"And now", smiled Jessie as she yanked the captain's hat off and placed it on her head, "As the new captain of his ship, I hear by declare it a love boat. For you're all gonna love where we'll be taking all of you. A trip to our beloved Rocketville! Shuffleboard and pool activities will begin soon. Oh, that's right! We three will be the only ones that'll be playing! HA HA HA HA!" laughed all three Rockets at once.

Just then, a Pokeball that was sitting by a deckchair popped open and Bill came out of it. "Rules or no rules", he shouted, "This rodent's gonna enjoy this sea going journey!" Just as he was about to, Bill suddenly became paralyzed as well. "I think maybe I'll get back into my ball", he said while trying his hardest to move. "The Sailor Moon marathon is about to start soon."

"Hey, it's the other talking Pokemon", shouted Meowth as he pounced on poor Bill and picked him up by the tail, "Let's see if talking Rattatas taste as good as they sound", said Meowth as he opened up his huge mouth while Bill shut his eyes.

A paralyzed Cameron managed to move his little finger over to his Pokebelt releasing Sandy from his ball. Since Sandshrews were immune to thunder wave attacks, he ran up to Meowth, slashing his face causing him to throw Bill across the deck and right onto a deckchair's pillow.

"Thank you fellow rodent", Bill called out to Sandy, "What am I saying?! I mean, thank you fellow living creature!"

"Shrew!" replied Sandy giving Bill a claws' up.

"Ah, my face!" cried Meowth looking at his scarred face in a hand mirror, "Did you see what that miserable mouse did to my beautiful face Jessie?!"

"Now you know how it feels", smirked Jessie happy that Meowth had finally gotten a taste of his own medicine. "Arbok, make that dusty little pipsqueak join our paralyzed little family!" she shouted as her Arbok appeared also wearing a protective bracelet around its tail. Arbok quickly glared at Sandy causing him to become paralyzed as well.

"Oh no", gasped Cameron, "He was our only hope left!"

"Now I get to have a ball with you!" grinned Meowth as he crumpled Sandy up into a ball and started dribbling him all over the deck like a basketball.

"You leave Sandy alone!" shouted Cameron, "Or I'll, I'll, I'll..." He tried his hardest to move but couldn't.

"Give it up punk!" laughed Meowth, "Cause the score is Team Rocket two, Loser Boy zero!" and he tried to throw the curled up Sandy in Cameron's face. But Cameron somehow managed to catch Sandy in his hands.

"Hey, I can move again!" smiled Cameron.

"So can we all", said Misty as everyone on the ferry suddenly became free from the thunder wave effects.

"What the?" asked Jessie as she turned around and found Electabuzz right next to their generator. He managed to yank a cord out of it and started to guzzle up all its electricity like it was a soda fountain.

"Hey, get away from our generator you dumb static seat cushion!" shouted Jessie as she, Reiko, Meowth, and Arbok started to charge at Buzz. But unfortunately for them, Buzz didn't like being interrupted during his mealtime and let loose a powerful thunderbolt at the two girls and the two Pokemon causing them to fall flat on the floor.

"Thanks Buzz", called out Cameron, "I guess you're really on our side after all." Buzz only replied by shooting a small thundershock at Cameron and then went on with his electric feast.

"I guess the only side Buzz is on is his own", said Brock.

"Shall we talk discipline now?" Stella asked a shocked Cameron.

Team Rocket slowly got on their feet where they found themselves surrounded by our heroes, each with a Pokemon out. Cameron had Sandy whom he had just cured with a paralysis heal potion, Misty had her Starmie, Stella had her Tangela, Jenny had her Growlithe, Seymour had his Wartortle, and Brock released his Onix. Just then the ferry started to sink.

"Brock, Onix is too heavy!" shouted Misty, "Call out something lighter quick!"

"Sorry", said Brock, "Onix return!" He sucked the huge python back into its ball and released Vulpix instead.

"Lickitung, I choose you!" shouted Jessie as she released her long tongued friend.

"Give it up", said Jenny, "Or my Growlithe will have to go rough on your poor Lickitung."

"Go ahead and send your little fleabag", laughed Jessie, "I dare you!"

"Growlithe, take down now!" commanded Jenny.

"Lickitung, slam attack!" commanded Jessie. Lickitung quickly shot out its tongue completely slamming Growlithe onto the deck knocking him out.

"GROWLITHE!" cried Jenny as she ran over and cradled her poor pooch.

"You're looking at Licky", laughed Jessie, "The fastest tongue in the west. Let's see who else might be faster."

"Vulpix, use your quick attack now!" commanded Brock. But it wasn't quick enough for Vulpix also got slammed as well.

"Sandy, try using your swift attack", commanded Cameron.

"Shrew!" said Sandy as he started throwing his swift stars at Lickitung, but it managed to catch them all in its tongue and throw them back at Cameron and Sandy. Sandy quickly curled up while Cameron ducked down just as the stars hit the nearby wall.

"Buzz, use your thunderbolt on it now!" Cameron called out to his Electabuzz who was on the other side of the ship. But Buzz was still guzzling up the generator's power ignoring Cameron's orders. Cameron sadly took out Buzz's Pokeball and sucked Buzz back in. He made an angry BUZZZZZ of hunger when he was forced to leave his meal. "Maybe I should save you for the electric wall", sighed Cameron, "If you'll actually be useful against it."

"Stella, let's double team against this salivating slob", said Misty.

"You got it", said Stella, "Tangela, vine whp!"

"Starmie, double edge attack!" commanded Misty. Just as Tangela and Starmie were about to finish off Lickitung, it managed to knock Starmie away causing it to get tangled into the vines of Tangela.

"Wow Jess, your Lickitung is really cool!" said Meowth.

"Very impressive my queen", said Reiko, "I hope one day I will become a great trainer like you."

"You wouldn't happen to be part vampire?" asked Meowth, "With all that sucking up you do?"

"Would you like me to bare my fangs onto your hide?" grumbled Reiko.

"You two can bicker later", said Jessie, "Right now it's time to give all these rebels a severe tongue lashing. Lickitung, do your stuff!"

"Lickie!" shouted Lickitung as it was about to lash at our heroes. But then, a beam of ice hit Lickitung's tongue completely sticking it to the deck.

"Nice ice beam Wartortle", said Seymour while patting his turtle's head.

"War!" said Wartortle proudly.

"That's gotta be painful", said Meowth as he watched Lickitung trying to pull its poor frozen tongue off the deck but with no luck.

"Come on Licky", shouted Jessie, "Your tongue's not your only weapon. Show them all up with supersonic!"

"LICKIE!" shouted Lickitung as it released sonic waves all over the ship while one of them hit the very top room where the control deck was. Just then, the ferry started to spin around very fast creating a huge whirlpool.

"What's going on?!" shouted Misty while holding on to her Starmie tightly.

"Those sonic waves have confused the ship's control panel!" shouted the captain, "I've gotta get up there and stop all of this!" But unfortunately, the captain got thrown back and landed face first in a very tight barrel.

Our heroes quickly pulled their Pokemon back into their balls and held on tightly to the nearest thing that was nailed down. Bill had his long curly tail wrapped around the rail right next to Seymour who was also holding on to it. "I don't believe it!" said Seymour happily, "This is possibly my most wildest ride ever and I don't feel the tiniest bit sick! It's a miracle! Oh, how I love Jenny!"

"I wish I could share your pleasure right now", sighed Bill who had other things on his mind like surviving.

Team Rocket was holding on tight to Lickitung whose tongue was still stuck onto the deck. "That's it Licky", called out Jessie smiling, "You're gonna be the hero of his episode today!" But the force started to make the part of the deck that Lickitung was stuck to break off causing our villians to be hurled off into the horizon blasting off once again.

Everyone screamed in terror as the little ferry started to sink deeper and deeper into the whirlpool. Cameron was holding onto the rail tightly with both hands and legs. He closed his eyes praying they'd all make it safe and sound. But then he felt some water touching his bottom, then his legs, his chest, his neck, and finally over his head.

"Don't tell me this is a two-parter!" thought Cameron as he suddenly went unconscious.

TO BE CONTINUED

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Uh oh! What's gonna happen to Cameron and company now?! Will they get pulled down into Davy Jones's locker and be forced to wash his gym socks? Or will they discover the lost world of Atlantis and be displayed in an oxygen tank by the groups of fishmen? To find out, stay tuned for chapter 11! ;) 


	11. Muscle Island

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 11

Muscle Island

Cameron slowly woke up from what seemed like his eternal unconsciousness. The last thing he remembered was holding onto the ferry's rail while getting sucked into a giant whirlpool. He found his glasses lying on some sand and put them on. He looked around and found himself all alone washed ashore on a huge tropical island.

"Hello?!" he called out nervously, "Misty? ,Brock?, Stella?, Seymour?, Jenny?, Bill?, are any of you guys out there?!" Cameron then realized that he was all alone on this probably uncharted island. He was about to go into a panic until he remembered that Ash and his friends also got washed up on an island in one episode. "Yeah", said Cameron quietly, "I'm probably on the island of Porta Vista. And if I keep walking, I'll find the tropical resort and all my friends will be waiting for me at the luxurious hotel. Yeah, that's how it might work out for me."

He looked at himself and he was pretty wet and sandy. His backpack was gone. He patted his head and realized that Ash's hat was gone as well. "Oh gee!" thought Cameron, "I promised Mrs. Ketchum that I'd return that hat to Ash. What am I gonna tell her? Or will I ever get the chance to tell her?!" He reached into his pockets and all he could find was his waterproof Pokedex, the gym badges he kept in the Pokedex's little compartment, and a blue comb. And finally, he nervously felt his Pokebelt.

"NOOOOO!" he cried as he looked down and found empty spaces on his Pokebelt. "They're all gone! Sandy, Gloom, Zubat, Slowpoke, and even mean Buzz! All gone!" he shouted as tears filled up in his eyes. "They're probably down in the bottom of the sea dying right now!" He started to run around in agony until he tripped on something round. He picked it up and discovered it was one of his Pokeballs.

"Maybe they haven't drowned at all", thought Cameron who was now calm, "Maybe they're scattered all over this island just like Ash's Pokemon were in that same episode. I wonder which one are you." He opened it up and out popped the one he really didn't want to be alone with.

"BUZZZZ!" said the Electabuzz looking around at his surroundings then looking at his master. He zapped Cameron again taking advantage of his damp clothes.

"Please Buzz", pleaded Cameron, "I really need your help right now. We're both stuck here on this deserted island and we need to start looking for the others while trying to find things to survive." But Buzz just yawned and sat down on the sand completely ignoring his master. Cameron was sick to death of Buzz's attitude. He had no choice but to follow Stella's advice.

"ATTENTION!" shouted Cameron in his loudest, angriest voice. Buzz stood up and looked curiously at the kid. "Now you listen and you listen good you smart-alec, short-tempered little runt!" shouted Cameron, "Like it or not, we're gonna need each other to survive and if you don't like it, you can just curl up into a puny little electric blanket and short circuit for all I care! You got that Private?!"

"Buzz", scowled Buzz.

"I can't hear you!" shouted Cameron. But Buzz didn't yell back. He just turned his back on Cameron and started to wander off. Cameron just didn't have a strong and commanding voice like Lt. Surge, or Electra did. "Come back Buzzy", pleaded Cameron while running after him. "What do I have to do to get you to listen to me?" Buzz only replied by paralyzing Cameron with his thunder wave attack. Cameron sadly stood there paralyzed while he watched his probably now ex-  
Pokemon walk off into the horizon. "I hope you find a master that'll treat you worse than Surge does!" he shouted.

* * * * * *

On the other side of the island, a Pokeball was sitting on the sand quietly. Then it started to shake itself open and out popped Sandy. "Shrew?" he called out wondering where Cameron is and where he was as well. He looked around and found Cameron's backpack lying on the beach right next to three Pokeballs. Sandy rushed over to the balls and sniffed them. He knew which Pokemon were in each one by their scent. He tapped open two of the balls and released Zubat and Slowpoke. "Hey, are you guys all right?" asked Sandy, (TRANSLATED IN ENGLISH FOR THOSE WHO DON'T SPEAK POKEMON).

"Yeah, I'm fine", replied Zubat, "I just love being dragged out of my dark and cozy Pokeball at all sorts of crazy hours!"

"Your welcome!" said Sandy sarcastically.

"Where's Mamma?" asked Slowpoke.

"I don't know", replied Sandy, "I hope he's okay."

"You don't think Cameron drowned in that blue and green stuff that tastes like salt?" asked Zubat.

"MAMMA!!" cried Slowpoke out loud, "I WANT MY MAMMA!"

"Hey, calm down kid", said Sandy while patting Slowpoke on the head, "Zubat only thought Cameron might've drowned. I bet he's still alive somewhere on this island. We survived, so there's a very likely chance he may have too."

"Okay Sandy", said Slowpoke feeling better. "I believe we'll see Mamma again."

"That's the spirit", smiled Sandy. "Now let's all gather these things on the beach and search for your mamma!" he said while laughing in the inside at what Slowpoke thinks of Cameron. He took his and his two friends' Pokeballs and put them inside Cameron's backpack and was about to put in the Pokeball that contained Gloom as well.

"Aren't you gonna let Gloom out?" asked Zubat, "It is one of us."

"No, I don't think that'd be a good idea", said Sandy fearing that Gloom might pounce on his body and suck out all the minerals like it did when they first met. How Sandy wished he never pulled that tiny little Oddish out of the ground.

"But it might starve to death if you keep it away from any sunlight for a long while", said Zubat, "And this island is filled with sunlight. Oh, how I loathe that stuff!" she cried while trying to hide her eyes with her wing.

"Oh, all right", said Sandy nervously as he tapped open the Pokeball and released the smiling Gloom. Sandy quickly hid in the backpack hoping it wouldn't find him.

"Hi everyone", said Gloom politely, "Where are we and where's Cameron and Sandy?"

"We don't know where Mamma is", said Slowpoke, "Do you?"

"Gloom wouldn't really know Slowpoke", explained Zubat, "Its been inside its Pokeball all this time just like the rest of us."

Sandy listened to the conversation they were having and was hoping that Gloom wouldn't find him or that his friends wouldn't tell it that he was hiding inside the backpack. Just then the flap open and Sandy looked in fear at the smiling, nectar drooling mouth of Gloom. "Oh there you are Sandy", said Gloom, "I was worried that you've drowned and I know how much you hate water."

"You're not gonna absorb me till I'm dry are you?" asked Sandy while sticking out his claws in defense.

"Don't worry Sandy, I'm your friend now", smiled Gloom as it got into the backpack and sat down next to him. "Please forgive me for what I did to you when we first met. I was just an immature little Oddish back then. Cameron feeds me water, sunlight, and very delicious plant food and I love the taste of that stuff better. I really like Cameron a lot. I just wish he wasn't allergic to me, that way we'd be closer just like he is to you." And nectar tears started to ooze out of Gloom's eyes.

"It's okay my friend", said Sandy putting a comforting claw on Gloom's head. "I'm here for you."

"Is there any room in there for two more Pokemon?" asked Zubat as she and Slowpoke crawled into the backpack with Sandy and Gloom. And they all sat in there in a tight squeeze wondering if they'll ever see their beloved master again.

* * * * * *

Cameron, who was now free from Buzz's paralysis, was wandering the beach trying to look for his friends, his Pokemon, and signs of any civilization. He then spotted a sexy body lying on the beach. He ran up to it and found it was Reiko completely wet and unconscious. Cameron was about to run away from this dangerous girl but then looked at her helpless and probably waterlogged as well.

"I just can't leave her to die like that!" he sighed, "Even if she is evil, violent, and incredibly sexy when wet!" But then he snapped out of it and removed the mask from Reiko's nose and mouth. She had the most beautiful face in the world of anime. Cameron's heart started beating like crazy and was almost too scared to give her CPR. But he got over it and pushed at her chest, pinched her nose, and started breathing into her mouth. Just then, Reiko coughed up the water into Cameron's face, started coughing some more, and sat up. The first thing she spied was the blonde-haired, glasses-wearing boy whom she remembered as the enemy.

"Are you all right?" Cameron asked her concerned. Reiko only replied by grabbing him by the shirt and slamming him down onto the sand.

"How dare you put your filthy lips on the ones of a ninja!" shouted Reiko, "Like the Ginsu knife that cuts through a tomato after it kills a metal can, I should cut off your face for the sexual treatment you tried to give me!"

"Hey, I just saved your life!" shouted Cameron as he stood up. "You should show at least a little gratitude!"

"Oh, I'll show you my gratitude", smiled Reiko evilly, "By carving you a tattoo on where the sun doesn't shine!" She tried to pull out her sword, but found out it was gone, along with her katanas, rope, and her throwing stars. Even the Pokeballs that contained her Tentacruel and Kingler were gone.

"NO!!!" she cried, "Not my little babies too! Why did this have to happen to me?!"

"Welcome to the club", said Cameron, "I've lost all my Pokemon too."

"Well I am pleased that my enemy is suffering from great losses as well", said Reiko, "And at least I have me a prisoner."

"Prisoner?!" laughed Cameron, "We're stuck here on a deserted island with no jail cells or dungeons and all your weapons are gone. How can I possibly be your prisoner?"

"Like the aged Ekans that loses its poison but still keeps its wrap attack, a ninja can still rely on other attacks without the use of weapons!" Smiled Reiko as she leapt up high into the air, landed next to a nearby boulder, and smashed it in two with one karate chop. Cameron was afraid, yet impressed, by this powerful and complex girl. "And if you even think of running away from me, I know a thousand ways to cripple a person. I've been practicing on all my Ken dolls!"

Cameron thought it would be best not to try escaping from her just yet. He wasn't sure if he really wanted to either. "Okay, I'll stick with you", he said calmly, "So shall we both explore this island until we find some civilization and maybe our Pokemon?"

"No we will not!" said Reiko, "We will remain here on this spot until my glorious Queen Jessie finds me."

"How do you know if she's still alive?" asked Cameron.

"Reiko slapped him on the cheek, "How dare you say that about my wonderful queen!" she shouted, "I know Jessie, she's probably found some way to survive and she's probably out there looking for me right now. And when she does find us, I'm going to show my gratitude to her by presenting you for her daily torment."

"If she is actually looking for her", thought Cameron knowing Jessie. Then Reiko slapped him again. "Hey, I didn't say anything!" he protested.

"I call tell what you're thinking about my queen by your expression!" shouted Reiko, "Now we are going to remain here whether you like it or not and you'd better like it or else!"

Cameron nodded his head while Reiko approached some nearby rocks. She started to take off her black ninja shirt while Cameron stood there shocked. "What...What are you doing?!" he asked.

"I'm damp and I could catch pneumonia if I wear this garment of watery death." Said Reiko as she finally pulled it off revealing a white tank top that was cut off at the waist. Cameron was relieved and was secretly fascinated at how attractive she looked in face and body. Reiko neatly laid her shirt on one of the rocks so it could dry out in the sun.

"You'd better take that wet shirt off too", said Reiko.

"No thanks", said Cameron, "I feel okay."

"Well I'm not going to risk you dying of pneumonia just before my queen gets here and she can't enjoy the pleasure of torturing you", said Reiko sternly, "Now take it off!" and she smashed another nearby rock. Cameron quickly pulled off his wet sweatshirt, laid it on a rock, and quickly covered his body with his arms.

"Now don't be like that!" said Reiko, "You obviously have nothing that would interest me and you could use some sunlight on that pasty skin." Cameron just wanted to insult her back about her body but couldn't for she was stronger and she was too sexy.

"So should we start looking for food?" asked Cameron, "I could go up into the trees and try to find some fruit."

"Oh no", shouted Reiko, "And have you be like the crafty Mankey that escapes from its prey by swinging to freedom from tree to tree? I don't think so! You will gather firewood while I will go into the water and gather fish. And if you try to escape from me, remember this!" and she leapt high into the air and landed five feet on the other side showing Cameron that she could easily tackle him no matter how fast he could get away. "Now start gathering!" she commanded.

"Yes ma'am!" said Cameron as he started to pick up every nearby stick while Reiko stepped into the water. Cameron did feel kind of embarrassed being held prisoner by this psycho ninja girl with his shirt off, but for some reason he wasn't scared. The tropical sun felt warm on his body and Reiko was extremely beautiful. He then saw her standing in the water with her eyes closed and her hands clasped together. Cameron thought it would be a good chance to sneak away, but he was curious about what she was up too. All of a sudden, all kinds of fish swam up to Reiko constantly flipping out of the water. It was like she was using some kind of ancient ninja power to summon them. She then started chopping and kicking at the fish knocking them onto the beach. She then gathered up all the fish and approached Cameron who had gathered a fair amount of firewood.

"Good, we can proceed with the cooking", said Reiko plopping the fish at Cameron's feet.

"So how do we start a fire?" asked Cameron.

"Oh, I forgot about that!" shouted Reiko angrily, "We do not have anything here that could start one. I must punish myself later for my lack of thought!"

"Hey, take it easy", said Cameron. "Don't be so hard on yourself."

"If you tell me to take it easy again, I'll be hard on you!" shouted Reiko, "The ninja is not one to be taken lightly. Got that?!"

"Yeah, sure", said Cameron realizing that Reiko's words were kind of amusing. "Hey, I think I got an idea." He took off his glasses and aimed them at the sun. The lens suddenly caught a sunbeam that Cameron aimed at the pile of wood causing a little spark to form.

"Why that's amazing!" said Reiko surprised, "What survival camp did you learn that from?"

"From a movie called Toy Story", smiled Cameron putting his glasses back on.

Reiko was puzzled and then took a good look at Cameron. He did look cute without his glasses and even cuter without a shirt. "Do you work out?" she asked.

"Not really", said Cameron, "P.E. was my worst subject at school. But I do try to lift two volumes of War and Peace every day to build up my arms."

Reiko became perplexed, yet fascinated at this boy's way of thinking then said, "Let's just eat." And she picked up a stick and stabbed a fish.

* * * * * *

Cameron and Reiko had eaten all the fish they could and then they both lied down on the sand letting their food digest while soaking up some of the sun's rays. "What I wouldn't give for some hush puppies right now", said Cameron who loved to eat those things with seafood.

"Well you'd better not get your hopes up prisoner", said Reiko in a relaxed voice, "Because when Team Rocket's through with you, you won't be seeing another puppy again, unless Queen Jessie orders me to feed you to our Growlithes."

"You really have high hopes that you'll be rescued", said Cameron, "I think it's good to have hope in tough times like these. I admire your faith and courage."

"Uh, thank you prisoner", said Reiko.

"Just call me Cameron", smiled Cameron.

"Okay Cameron-san", said Reiko. She was a little surprised that a prisoner of hers could act so nice to her. Maybe he wasn't really her prisoner after all. Just then they heard a weak cry call out, "Buzz!" Cameron sat up and found Buzz crawling on the ground feeling very tired and weak.

"Buzz, are you all right?!" gasped Cameron as he approached the furry Pokemon that just collapsed on the ground. Reiko was worried that he'd order his Electabuzz to shock her so they could escape.

"Don't you dare try shocking me with that thing!" shouted Reiko as she started to go into attack mode.

"Relax", said Cameron in a serious voice, "Buzz doesn't look like he could harm a fly right now. There's something terribly wrong with him. Buzz, what's wrong? Did somebody beat you up or are you just hungry?"

"Buzz!" cried out Buzz who showed Cameron by trying to shoot a bolt out of his finger but all that came out was a little spark. Cameron pulled out his Pokedex and typed up the habits of an Electabuzz.

"An Electabuzz's main food source is electricity", replied Dexeena, "If it doesn't get any within 48 hours, it will die."

"Don't worry Buzz", said Cameron cradling his Pokemon, "I won't let you die. Even if you don't like me at all, I'll find you some electricity to eat."

"Ha, Ha, Ha!" scoffed Reiko, "And just how are you going to find any electricity on this non-tech island?"

"I think I have an idea", said Cameron as he ran up to the rock, grabbed his shirt which was now dry, and came back to his Electabuzz. Then Cameron pulled out his comb and started rubbing it on the fuzzy part of his shirt creating static electricity. "Here you go Buzz", said Cameron as he put the staticky comb up to Buzz's mouth, "It's not a Thanksgiving dinner, but at least it's something."

"Buzzzz!" said Buzz feeling a little better as he slurped up the electricity. Cameron then continued to rub the comb some more creating some more static for Buzz. Reiko watched Cameron feed his poor, tired Electabuzz for a whole hour and did some thinking. She remembered how Cameron said that his Electabuzz hated him, but here he is feeding the hateful Pokemon doing everything he could to keep it alive. Reiko then remembered that Cameron gave her CPR when she drowned in that ocean. This was two times today that he saved two of his enemies. "Could I be wrong to mistreat this nice guy?" wondered Reiko, "No, he is just another dumb kid and he will still feel my wrath soon! Don't forget Reiko, you are a ninja who feels no emotion!"

Then she looked at Cameron again. He was getting pretty tired trying to keep Buzz alive. His second arm was getting numb and he was sweating. But Buzz was feeling a little better. Well enough to take the shirt and comb from Cameron and to feed himself. He looked at his master and made a quiet, "El, buzz", which probably meant, "Thank you", in his language.

Cameron smiled for he wondered if Buzz would respect him now. Then he felt some hands massaging his shoulders. "Reiko?" he asked.

"You did everything you could for your Pokemon", said Reiko, "So you deserve some nursing as well. But don't get any thoughts! I'm only doing this so you'll be well enough to gather more firewood when the time comes."

"Sure, whatever", said Cameron who suddenly felt relaxed and happy as Reiko's soft hands squeezed his bare shoulders until they were sore no more. Just then, they heard a voice call out, "MACHOP!" They both turned around and found a small lizard-like Pokemon with gray skin and huge muscular arms. Cameron aimed his Pokedex at the creature.

"MACHOP, the superpower Pokemon", replied Dexeena, "Loves to build its muscles. The Machop trains in all styles of martial arts to become stronger."

"A Pokemon that can be taught the ways of the ninja", smiled Reiko, "I must catch it! That way I'll have a strong fighting Pokemon by my side just in case that Electabuzz gets better and my prisoner has it attack me!" She reached into her boot and managed to find an empty Pokeball. She threw it at Machop, but Machop managed to whack it away with a strong karate chop causing it to hit Reiko right into the face. Then the Machop started to run into the tropical forest. "COME BACK HERE YOU INSOLENT LITTLE POKEMON!!" screamed Reiko who had a huge round sore mark on her face. "You will become my prisoner as well!" And she ran after it into the forest while Cameron watched curiously. Just then he heard Reiko scream. He looked at Buzz who was still building his strength up on his shirt and comb. Feeling that Buzz'd be all right for now, Cameron ran into the forest to see what happened to Reiko.

As he got deeper into the forest, he suddenly saw about 20 cartoon eyes peeking out of the darkness. "I don't like the looks of those eyes", said Cameron nervously, "And he was right, for all those eyes belonged to a troop of six foot tall lizards that looked like Machops, but were bigger, more muscular, and wore golden wrestling belts around their waists. Cameron pulled out his Pokedex and Dexeena described them.

"MACHOKE, the evolved form of Machop", replied Dexeena, "Its muscular body is so powerful that it must wear a power-save belt to regulate its motions."

"Machoke, choke, choke, choke", said all the Machokes at once as they all surrounded the nervous Cameron. He tried to slip right under their legs but one of the Machoke's grabbed him and wrapped its huge arms around Cameron's torso.

"How dare you do this to a member of Team Rocket!" shouted Reiko as another Machoke brought her to the group all tied up with strong vines. "My queen will have all your cyst's cut out and have you eat them when she hears about this!" All the Machokes just laughed at Reiko's funny human words, especially the little Machop that she was unsuccessful of catching. She then saw the Machokes tying up Cameron with strong vines as well. "No, you can't be their prisoner!" she wailed, "I made you my prisoner first fair and square!"

"Sorry, but we can't always get our way", said Cameron as the Machokes started pushing him and Reiko somewhere even deeper into the forest.

* * * * * *

The Machokes had marched the two tied-up teenagers into a village with huts made out of bamboo and mud shaped like Pokeballs. They became surprised when they saw the citizens of this village. "It's a whole community of Machops and Machokes!" gasped Cameron.

Sure enough, there were Machops and Machokes everywhere. Lifting barbells made of boulders, punching punching-bags made of slabs of meat. They even saw Machop kids sitting on the ground playing some kind of card game that had human pictures on them.

"I guess I'm not gonna find my friends relaxing in a tropical resort", he thought nervously. He looked at Reiko marching beside him looking unafraid and very angry. "How can she remain calm in a situation like this?" he wondered, "Must be a ninja thing."

Then they came across a huge stone throne at the end of the village. Sitting on the throne was an extremely huge Machoke with four strong arms. Cameron thought if he could reach his Pokedex, Dexeena would say something like, "MACHAMP, the evolved form of Machoke. Using its powerful muscles, the Machamp throws powerful punches that can send the victim clear over the horizon."

Cameron also noticed a thing on the Machamp's head. "Ash's hat!" said Cameron, "So that's where it went to!"

The Machokes made the teenagers get down on their knees while they did the same thing bowing their heads saying, "Ma-Machoke-Choke!" which meant, "Your Majesty!"

"That Machamp must be the king of this island", Cameron whispered to Reiko.

"What do you suppose gave it away?" said Reiko sarcastically, "Is it because he's sitting on a throne while these muscle-brains are groveling in shame and making us do it too?!" Machamp approached Reiko and looked at her with a huge smile on his huge mouth. He ordered a Machoke to cut Reiko free from her bonds.

"You've just made your last mistake King Stupid!" laughed Reiko as she started to make a flying kick at Machamp. But he just grabbed Reiko by the ankles with his upper hands holding her upside-down. Then used his lower hands to feel and pinch Reiko's arms.

"This cannot be, HA HA HA!" laughed Reiko who was extremely ticklish, "Tickling a ninja will lead you to dire consequences! HA HA HA HA!" When Machamp was finished, he threw Reiko into the arms of a Machoke who held onto her tightly. Then Machamp ordered Cameron cut free from his bonds. He approached the boy and started pinching his arms as well.

"HA HA HA HA!" Laughed Cameron who was also ticklish, "If I didn't know better, I'd say he was testing our muscles!" he thought while laughing.

Then Machamp stopped and spoke to his Machoke subjects. "Machamp, champ, champ, champ!" he said in a pleased voice. Then the Machokes grabbed the teenagers and took them to another place.

* * * * * *

Cameron and Reiko now found themselves locked in some kind of cell shaped like a giant Pokeball. "I wonder what they're gonna do to us?" Cameron asked. Reiko just sat there quietly holding her knees. A small door below the big door opened and their dinner was pushed in to them. It was mineral water and wheat germ. "This must be a Machoke's regular diet", said Cameron as he looked at the yucky stuff, "No wonder why they stay so buffed. Care for some Reiko?" Reiko still said nothing. Cameron walked over to Reiko and discovered that she was crying. That didn't seem like her one bit.

"Don't worry Reiko", said Cameron, "We'll find some way out of this! Remember the hope you have that your Queen will come for you soon."

"Who am I kidding!!!" wailed Reiko, "Jessie's not really coming for me! She doesn't really care about anyone but herself. I guess this is what happens to you when you try to make friends with evil!"

"Then why are you always praising her even when she's not around?" asked a now surprised Cameron.

"Because Jessie trained me to!" sobbed Reiko, "She wanted a warrior that'll always like her no matter how vain or cruel she acts. It just drove me crazy. The only reason I joined Team Rocket was so I could find a way out of that trapped town. Now that I'm actually free from it, I've landed in another far worse prison. And I don't know the Machamp language for sucking-up!"

"Well why didn't you try to run away from your teammates when you had the chance?" asked Cameron.

"Because I'm addicted to being Jessie's little bootlicker!" cried Reiko, "I didn't mean to do all those mean things to you and your friends. It's just once I had a taste of power, knocking around James and Meowth under Jessie's permission, I just couldn't get enough of it! My older siblings warned me that too much power could corrupt the most innocent soul and they were right! I bet I can hear them laughing at me right now!" And she started crying even harder.

Cameron never figured that this pyscho-girl who welds a mean katana could have a troubled, emotional side. "Please don't cry", said Cameron as he wiped the tears from Reiko's eyes with his finger. "We'll get out of this mess. Remember I'm a good guy and good guys always seem to prevail in the end. I bet if you become a good guy too, that'll make our chances twice as good."

"You sound like a cartoon character from a cheesy Saturday morning show", said Reiko now laughing a little. Cameron started to laugh too. He was starting to enjoy his time with Reiko now that she showed him her other side. Then he noticed Reiko shivering.

"Are you cold?" asked Cameron and then he started shivering as well. Mainly because night had fallen and neither one of them were wearing their shirts.

"Just a little Cameron-san", said Reiko, "Maybe if we hold each other, that'll warm us up a little", and she scooted over to where Cameron was sitting and wrapped her arms around him burying her face in his bare chest while her tears ran down it. A blushing Cameron sat there shocked but then also wrapped his arms around her.

"I'm truly in an anime world", he thought while smiling.

* * * * * *

Meanwhile, Sandy, Gloom, Zubat, and Slowpoke were wandering the beach calling out for Cameron. Slowpoke was carrying Cameron's backpack on his back while Zubat was scouting around up in the night sky. She then noticed something brightly sparking from below. She immediately flew back down to the search party.

"Have you found Cameron?" asked Sandy.

"No", replied Zubat, "But I found someone else we could invite to our little search party. They all followed Zubat and they found Electabuzz still feeding himself with static electricity.

"Hey, you're Cameron's Electabuzz", said Sandy, "The one that doesn't like him at all."

"Yeah, and what's it to you rodent?" said Buzz in a smug voice.

Sandy was about to carve his initials into Buzz's hide for that remark until Gloom stopped him. "Do you know what happened to our master? Even though you don't like Cameron can you please help us find him, for your fellow Pokemon?"

"Who says I don't like the little geek?" said Buzz, "I admit that at first I thought he was just a boney little twerp who wouldn't last five seconds on the battlefield. But when I was running low on juice, he gave me this comb and the shirt off his back to keep me alive. Lt. Surge taught me that a good soldier never leaves a faithful companion to die. And as soon as I get all my strength back, I'm gonna start my own search party and find my new Sergeant myself."

"Wouldn't it be better if we all joined you?" asked Zubat, "After all, five Pokemon heads are better than one."

"Please help us find Mamma", pleaded Slowpoke.

Buzz looked puzzled at what Slowpoke said and then replied, "Okay, you tenderfoots can come with me. But remember, I'm the leader of this squadron and if any of you get out of line. It's K.P. for all of you!"

"K.P.?" asked Sandy.

"Kracking Pokemon", smiled Buzz. Sandy just made a hidden scowl at this bossy Electabuzz.

"Do you know which way Cameron last went?" asked Gloom.

"The last I remember, our Sergeant went into the forest chasing after some human girl", said Buzz. "I tried to go after him, but I wasn't fully charged up yet."

"Maybe this'll help", said Sandy sniffing the shirt. "I think he went in that direction." And Sandy ran off into the forest while the others followed him. Usually Slowpoke was the one that always followed last, but this time it was Buzz who was walking slowly still feeding himself static.

"I'm just glad Surge isn't here to see me like this", sighed Buzz.

* * * * * *

The next morning, Cameron woke up to a surprising, yet wonderful situation. He was leaning against a wall while a sleeping Reiko was holding onto him using his chest as a pillow. Cameron decided to let her sleep and not wake her up to the scary cell that they were being kept in. But unfortunately, the Machokes burst in waking her up.

"What, what's going on?" asked a groggy Reiko finding out she was holding her prisoner passionately.

"I think it might be time for our breakfast", said Cameron looking at the smiling Machokes. They picked up the teenagers and clamped some golden wrestling belts around their waists. "Then again, maybe later", said Cameron wondering what was going to happen next.

* * * * * *

Cameron and Reiko found themselves in the center of a huge fighting arena. In the stands were hundreds of Machops and Machokes cheering, waving flags that say M on them, and wearing large foam hands in the shape of fists. And in the center aisle was the Machamp sitting on his throne still wearing Ash's hat.

"It looks like they want us to fight each other", said Cameron nervously.

"Well I don't fight for lowly unintelligent Pokemon!" shouted Reiko who was trying to pull her belt off but it was too clamped on tight. Just then, two Machokes jumped on top of platforms on the opposite ends of the arena.

"Ma, ma, champ, Machamp!" called out Machamp announcing the beginning of the fight. Machoke 1 started to karate chop the air around it. Cameron suddenly found his arms swinging in all directions for he now had no control of them. He also found himself walking to Reiko getting ready to karate chop her. "What do you think you're doing?" gasped Reiko, "This isn't you!"

"I don't know!" cried Cameron. "I can't help myself!" Then Machoke 2 started to jump up in the air and make a huge kick. Reiko suddenly jumped up high in the air as well kicking Cameron sharply in the chest and onto the ground. Machoke 2 started to make a headlock move and Reiko suddenly pounced on Cameron putting him in a headlock while wrapping her other arm around his torso.

"These aren't my traditional fighting skills!" shouted Reiko, "What's happening to me?!"

"The Machokes must be controlling our movements with these belts!" said Cameron gasping for air, "Which means we're the Pokemon and they're our masters!"

Machoke 1 made a low kick causing Cameron to swing his leg knocking Reiko off of him. Then Machoke 1 started to raise its arms into the air and spin around very fast. Cameron found himself lifting up Reiko, spinning her around, and tossing her onto the ground. "I hope you realize that I really didn't do that!" shouted Cameron.

"No problem", said Reiko weakly, "But this does feel like a nice workout though." Machoke 2 started pumping itself up causing Reiko to get up while her arms were blowing up like huge balloons.

"Uh oh", thought Cameron, "That looks like Machoke's focus energy. Now I'm in for it!" But then Cameron found his arms and pecs blowing up for Machoke 1 was using focus energy as well. Cameron almost thought he saw Reiko salivating at his new body. But Machoke 2 made Reiko charge at Cameron putting him in a tight bear hug squeezing him very hard.

The crowd was cheering loudly waiting for one of them to die. Some were even betting jars of wheat germ on who'd be the winner. Just then, Cameron and Reiko found themselves standing perfectly still not moving at all making the crowd very angry.

"What are those Machokes doing?!" demanded Reiko who saw them standing perfectly still also.

"There's your answer!" smiled Cameron as he looked down and found all of his Pokemon who just rushed into the arena. Slowpoke was using his disable attack on the Machokes causing them to stop the fight. All the Machops and Machokes started to charge into the arena ready to pound on the Pokemon. But Buzz, who was feeling 100 percent better, managed to paralyze the first half of them with thunder wave, Gloom put the second half to sleep with sleep powder and Zubat used supersonic to confuse the last half causing them to attack each other.

Sandy looked curiously at his incredibly pumped up master standing perfectly still. "Sandy, can you get these belts off us?" asked Cameron.

"Shrew", replied Sandy as he slashed the belts off of Cameron's and Reiko's waists causing them to move again as well as shrink back down to their skinny selves.

"What a shame", thought Reiko sad that she lost her newly given strength but happy that she was free.

"Thank you my friend", smiled Cameron as he hugged Sandy while all his other Pokemon friends approached him. "And thank you all, all, uh, AACHOO!" sneezed Cameron. Gloom sadly started to step a few feet away from him. "And I thank you too Gloom", called out Cameron causing his Gloom to smile a little.

"Slowpoke", said Slowpoke returning his backpack to his Mamma. "Thank you son", smiled Cameron as he removed the pack from Slowpoke and hugged him like a parent.

"Zubat, bat, bat", said Zubat as she perched herself on Cameron's shoulder. "You're the tops too Zubat", he smiled as he wiggled her ear.

Buzz humbly approached Cameron and handed him back his comb and shirt all neatly folded. "Very nice", smiled Cameron, "You truly are a disciplined soldier."

"BUZZ, EL, BUZZ!" shouted Buzz saluting his new commanding officer. Suddenly, they heard a loud scary voice scream out, "MACHAMP!" An angry Machamp jumped out of his throne and landed on the ground with a huge THUD causing everyone to almost fall down.

"Leave this to me", smiled Reiko ready to make this champ look like a chump. But Buzz pushed her aside and approached the hulking Machamp.

Machamp started chopping at Buzz with all four of his arms causing him to flinch in pain. Cameron and his Pokemon watched worriedly while Reiko was kind of grateful that Buzz was taking the pain Machamp had planned for her. Just then Buzz balled up both his fists and sparks started to shoot out of them. Machamp stopped fighting for he was curious. Then Buzz started punching at Machamp non-stop sending currents of electricity through his large body.

"What kind of cool attack is that?!" smiled Cameron as he took out his Pokedex.

"Thunderpunch, Electabuzz's specialty attack", said Dexenna, "Several blows of Thunderpunches can cause severe damage to an opponent." Buzz started to charge up his fist making it glow like the sun. He then shocked Machamp good and hard causing him to smile and fall to the ground. Zubat quickly snatched the hat away from Machamp and placed it back on Cameron's head.

"BUZZ, EL, BUZZ!" shouted Buzz as he leapt onto the Machamp's butt and saluted.

* * * * * *

Cameron, Reiko, and the five Pokemon had returned to the spot where they first met. Reiko found her shirt now dry and put it back on. Cameron was sitting on a rock gathered around all his dear Pokemon, except for Gloom who was standing by the forest so that its master wouldn't start sneezing and was getting ready to defend its master in case the Machokes would try to go after them.

Reiko approached Cameron and gave him a kiss on the lips. "Wow, what was that for?" he asked while blushing.

"That was for saving my life when I had drowned", smiled Reiko, "Like the aluminum foil that keeps a ripe tomato fresh. You truly have a heart of gold."

"Thank you", smiled Cameron who no longer thought of Reiko as an enemy and maybe even more than a friend.

"So do you think we'll actually ever get off this island?" asked Reiko.

"Maybe those things coming over here might be able to help", said Cameron pointing to the two figures swimming up to the shore. Reiko immediately knew who they were.

"Tentacruel and Kingler!" cried Reiko happily as she ran over to her two Pokemon and gave them a big hug while they hugged her back as well. Cameron smiled for now everyone on this island was reunited with their Pokemon. Just then, he heard some buzzing up in the sky. Everyone looked above and saw a helicopter flying above the island.

"We have to get the pilot's attention somehow", said Cameron. Buzz replied by shooting a thunderbolt up in the air. The pilot managed to see it and started to come in for a landing. "Hey Reiko", called out Cameron, "Come on, we're finally saved!" Reiko was about to approach the landing helicopter until her eagle-eye spotted a policewoman through one of the windows.

"Uh, oh", said Reiko as she approached her two Pokemon and started to speak to them. Cameron and all of his Pokemon approached the helicopter just as the door opened. He was even extra-happy when he saw who came out of it. "Misty, Brock, Stella, Jenny, Seymour, Bill!" he cried, "You're all alive!"

"And so are you!" smiled Misty as she gave Cameron a big hug.

"I'm sure glad you're okay kid", smiled Brock, "When that ferry got pulled under, we saw you get pulled away into the center of the whirlpool."

"The rest of us were lucky", said Stella, "The whirlpool finally stopped and we all managed to grab onto the nearest thing that would keep us afloat."

"And we were even luckier that the Celadon Nurse Joy had heard about the boat's sinking and got in this helicopter to save us", said Seymour pointing to Nurse Joy who was at the cockpit waving to Cameron.

"And we begged Joy to keep circling around every island and area of this sea until we found you", said Bill, "Something inside all of us told us that you were still alive."

"You guys are the greatest friends I could ever ask for", said Cameron with a tear in his eye. "And now we have a new friend that can join us. Oh Reiko! Uh, Reiko? Where are you?" he asked while looking around the beach but found no trace of the girl.

"You mean that vandal's here?!" shouted Jenny as she took out her handcuffs, "Wait'll I get my long arms of the law around her! I lost two vans because of her and those dirty Rockets!"

"Hey, what's this?" asked Misty as she found a huge stick sticking out of the sand with a note stuck at the top. Cameron grabbed the note and read it.

"Dear Cameron-san:

I truly enjoyed the time we were forced to spend together. I've never met a boy quite like you. You're clever, sweet, and you treat and love your Pokemon dearly. But unfortunately I cannot be with you. For I am still a Rocket and I took an oath of loyalty to Queen Jessie even if I didn't like it. I'm going off to find her and that silly Meowth wherever they may be. But I'm going to do what I can to lead them off your trail for I do want you to succeed in your mission. I truly hope we can have another magical moment like we did in that cell and maybe next time we won't have to engage in battle afterwards.

Until we meet again.

Reiko. XOXOXOXO"

Cameron looked up from the note and saw two figures swimming off into the horizon and whispered. "Good luck my cute little ninja!"

* * * * * *

Reiko was riding on top of her Tentacruel while Kingler was swimming right behind them. She turned around and sadly watched the island where she had her amazing adventure disappear into the horizon.

TO BE CONTINUED 


	12. The Garden of Erika

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey ch.12

The Garden of Erika

Reiko was still surfing the seas on her Tentacruel searching for Jessie and Meowth. She was thinking about the scary, but romantic adventure she had with Cameron and wondered if she'll ever have another chance to be with him again. But not as a heartless Rocket criminal. She then saw a huge buoy coming up the horizon and there were two figures clutched onto it tightly. "Full speed Tentacruel!" commanded Reiko as they swam even faster while Kingler tried to keep up with them.

Jessie and Meowth had been holding onto the buoy for a long time and they were looking pretty dirty and hungry. "Care for some more plankton Jess?" asked Meowth as he plucked some little mites off his fur and offered them to Jessie.

"No thanks!" scowled Jessie, "I think the ones that are already in my stomach are starting to lay eggs so I'll probably be full for the rest of my life! This is no way for a Queen to be living! I sure wish Reiko were here!"

"I wish James was here", whined Meowth, "He always does the whining for both of us."

"Queen Jessie, Meowth-san, is that you?" called out a Japanese accented voice. They looked up and smiled when they saw Reiko and her two Pokemon swimming up to them.

"Reiko!" cried Jessie happily, "You've come for us!" and she and Meowth jumped off the buoy and onto Tentacruel's head hugging their favorite intern.

"Oh great and wise Reiko!" cried Meowth while stroking himself against her legs, "I've never doubted you for one minute!" and he started to kiss her boots. "And he calls me a bootlicker!" thought Reiko.

"Well it's about time you got here!" said Jessie angrily, "I was beginning to think that you wouldn't be coming for us and that you'd be having a romantic encounter with one of those rotten rebels to think about your beloved queen!"

"Yes, that is an interesting theory", said Reiko smiling on the outside but serious on the inside. "Well, you do not have to worry about those rebels any longer. It was reported that they were all sucked under the bottom of the sea all dead."

"You mean they're all gone?" asked Meowth all excited instead of sorrowful.

"I believe so", said Reiko hoping this lie would make them want to forget their mission on capturing Cameron. "So I suggest that we all head back to Rocketville so you can get cleaned up, fed, and be back on your nice comfortable thrones before ABC's TGIF night starts."

"Ah, home", sighed Meowth ready to get back on his wonderful throne which was actually a litter box.

"No", said Jessie. That two-letter word caused Meowth's fantasy cloud to shatter.

"What'da'ya' mean no?" cried Meowth.

"I've known two of those twerps for a long time", said Jessie, "They've survived shipwrecks, typhoons, giant Pokemon, ghost Pokemon, prehistoric Pokemon, and lots of other cliffhangers. So there's no doubt in my mind that they're still alive and on their way to Celadon City."

"I don't know about that your majesty", said Reiko, "My ninja senses tell me that they're all dead."

"Well my evil senses are more powerful and I say we head over to Celadon before they reach Giovanni", said Jessie, "And besides, I'm curious to know how our old tyrannical boss is doing these days."

"But that might not be wise", said Reiko.

"What's wrong Reiko", smiled Meowth, "Is the all fearless girl in black suddenly developing a yellow streak?" Reiko suddenly went from a serious look to an angry look. She then whacked Meowth into the water with a mallet made from coconut shells and bamboo.

"Like the Lickitung that doesn't watch its tongue when it slurps up prickly pears, foolish Meowths should watch their tongues as well!" scowled Reiko not wanting her teammates to see her emotions. "Now let's get going to Celadon", she said as Tentacruel ferried her and Jessie east to Celadon City while Kingler picked up a damp Meowth by the tail and followed them.

* * * * * *

We find our heroes at the Celadon City Pokemon center where Nurse Joy had just treated Cameron's injuries and fed him. She was now healing all of Cameron's Pokemon while he was telling his friends about the encounter he just had with Reiko.

"That sounds like something that came out of a cheesy romance novel", said Misty.

"And what's wrong with chessy?" asked Bill.

"I don't think it's a good idea to be obsessed with this girl", said Brock, "After all, she is a Rocket and I've learned long ago not to be taken in by a pretty face. Except for the one I'm holding in my arm right here" and he kissed Stella while she blushed.

"But it's true", said Cameron. "I don't think Reiko really is evil. She's just a troubled girl forced to serve Jessie with no choice."

"She does have a choice", said Stella, "She's just making the wrong choice."

"What a predicament", said Seymour who suddenly went into poem mode again.

"This girl had the beauty of a rose but survived in the cold.  
Violence, destruction, and hate were all she seemed to hold.  
Till one day a kind boy came and crossed her path.  
But for some strange reason she couldn't show her wrath.  
His kindness and concern seemed to melt her ice.  
And for the first time, she started to act nice.  
But she feels deep down that she's a bad girl still.  
If only her love can destroy her evil will."

Everyone stood silent as they thought of Seymour's poem while Stella was thinking, "Why doesn't Brock write me poems? Even corny ones?"

"I hope you realize Cameron that the next time we see her, I'm going to have to arrest her", said Jenny politely. "After all, she is a Rocket and what she did to my first van, I'll just, I'll....I'll" said Jenny starting to now sound angry but then went back to her normal self. "Right now we should concentrate on finding this game center that Giovanni owns so we can find him and get some answers!"

"Do you think Giovanni might still have Ash held captive?" asked Misty.

"I don't know Misty", said Jenny, "But we'll soon find out as soon as I get some info."

"Here you are Cameron", said Nurse Joy as she handed Cameron back his Pokeballs. "All your Pokemon have been healed and are fighting fit."

"Thank you", smiled Cameron as he hugged his Pokeballs and placed them back on his belt.

"Excuse me Joy", said Jenny, "We'd like to ask you a question?"

"But of course", smiled Joy, "Asking questions is a good way of finding out something." Everyone looked funny at Joy. "Oh, sorry", giggled Joy, "I was just watching Sesame Street with my five year old cousin Joy this morning."

"Well", said Jenny, "Our question is do you know if there's a game center in Celadon City?"

"Gee I don't know", said Joy, "I've never heard of a game center being in Celadon."

"But a person we met said that there was one", said Brock.

"Hmmm", said Joy, "I wouldn't really know. I just took over my Aunt Joy's job here a couple of months ago so I don't really know much about this city."

"Well she was certainly helpful", thought Stella frowning.

"I know", said Joy, "You can go and ask Erika, the Celadon City gym leader. She's lived here all her life so she might can give you some info."

"Yes", said Cameron, "And maybe I can challenge her and win a RainbowBadge."

"Ah, Erika!" sighed Brock remembering the pretty kimono wearing gym leader who owned a gym where women only worked.

"Brock, why are you levitating up in the air like that?" asked Stella as she yanked Brock down causing him to wake up from his daydream.

"Oops, sorry", said Brock, "My mind must've wandered off somewhere."

"You should put rocks on your mind to keep it there", said Misty, "If there weren't enough on it already."

* * * * * *

Our heroes had arrived at a gym with a huge red flower sticking out at the top like an umbrella. When they got to the door, they found a knocker in the shape of an Ivysaur. "I guess we should knock", said Cameron as he took the vine shaped knocker and knocked with it. A window on the door opened and out popped a pretty girl with short blue hair.

"Who knocked on that knocker?!" said the girl angrily. "Didn't you read the sign?"

"What sign?" asked Cameron.

"Oh dear", said the girl as she looked at a black screen right next to the door and closed the window. A message started to appear the screen and everyone read it out loud, "Knocker out of order, please ring."  
Cameron became puzzled, but he pushed the nearby doorbell and the girl popped out of the window again.

"That's better", said the girl now smiling, "Have all of you come to challenge Erika, our beloved gym leader and perfume manufacturer?"

"Yes, I would like to please", said Cameron.

"My what a polite boy you are", smiled the girl, "Tell me, do you like perfume?"

Cameron stood there nervous for a second and replied, "Yes, I do like perfume. I can't get enough of the stuff." He hated to lie like that, but he remembered from the cartoon when Ash badmouthed Erika's perfume. That same blue-haired girl stamped a huge red X onto Ash's face and banned him from the gym.

"Well, come right on in everyone", smiled the girl as she opened the door and let them all in.

"Cameron", Misty whispered to him, "I thought you said that you were allergic to perfume."

"I am", whispered Cameron, "But it would seem rude to say I didn't like the stuff."

"We'd also like to ask your boss a few questions", said Jenny.

The girl looked nervously at the policewoman and said, "Why, is Erika in trouble with the law? I warned her about ripping the price tag of that mattress!"

"Relax", smiled Jenny, "We just want to know if Erika knows where a certain place in your fine city is located."

"Oh very well", said the girl now relieved, "Erika is busy with her perfume shop right now, but in the meantime you can hang out in our little greenhouse until she gets back." She pushed open a huge set of doors and they all found themselves in a huge indoor garden with all kinds of plant life. There were women dressed in gardening uniforms all over the place taking care of the plants along with all kinds of grass Pokemon. Cameron was hoping he wouldn't get any nectar in his nose while Misty and Stella were gazing at all the beautiful flowers while Brock was secretly gazing at all the pretty girls.

Bill started to smell something delicious and started to sniff around until he found it. It looked like a piece of swiss cheese growing from a vine. "Miracles can happen!" smiled Bill thinking he could take a snip of that plant home with him. But then the cheese started to open up a huge mouth and snapped up Bill until only his curly tail was showing. Cameron heard Bill's muffled cries for help from the plant and managed to pull Bill out.

"Are you all right Bill?" asked Cameron.

"Yeah", said Bill covered with milk, "That thing could make the common mousetrap obsolete!"

"I see that your little friend had accidentally came near our new Velveeta Mouse Trap", said the blue-haired girl. "It's a new specialty cloned plant-life used for removing pesky rodents in gardens."

"Pesky is such an improper word", thought Bill.

"Hey girls", called out the girl as all her friends approached Cameron. "This boy here is a huge lover of perfume. Isn't that wonderful?"

"Wow", smiled a green-haired girl, "Usually we can hardly find guys who like perfume. You're one of a kind kid!"

Cameron just blushed while feeling pretty small at the same time. "Uh, thank you", he said.

"You just have to try my new fragrance", smiled the green-haired girl, "It's called Bellsprout No. 7", and she took out a huge bottle and sprayed some kind of perfume in Cameron's face. Cameron replied back with a small sneeze.

"That's very nice stuff", said Cameron who was wiping his glasses clean with his thumb.

"That's nothing", said a red-haired girl, "You haven't lived till you've had a whiff of Tangela supreme", She sprayed some more perfume into Cameron's face while he sneezed again.

"Are you coming down with a cold?" asked the blue-haired girl.

"Oh no", said Cameron smiling at the girl while imagining the stamper she'd yank out if she knew the truth about him and perfume. "It's just that I had a big lunch today and I sometimes sneeze after big meals."

"Oh, okay then" she said while smiling. Then one by one the girls started approaching poor Cameron wanting him to try out each of their favorite perfumes.

* * * * * *

Seymour found a bouquet of orange flowers sitting in a vase. He picked one out and handed it to Jenny. "Here you go my cute cop", he smiled, "A flower for the girl who has me in her power."

"Aw, that's so sweet", smiled Jenny, "Thank you Seymour", and she kissed him on the cheek while he blushed happily. But when Jenny put her nose up to the flower, a pair of tiny jaws popped out of the bud and bit her on the nose. "OW, OUCH, OWIE!" cried Jenny as she was able to pull it off and then looked at a worried Seymour angrily.

"Oh, I see you've discovered our rare Snap Dragonites", said the blue-  
haired girl as she walked by them. "Just be careful not to sniff them too close or keep them near your pants."

"I hope you can forgive me Jenny", pleaded Seymour as he got down on his knees begging for her forgiveness.

"How can I stay angry at a sweet man like you?" smiled Jenny while her nose was still red. Just close your eyes and stick out your lips and I'll show you that you're forgiven."

Seymour complied waiting for what was coming to him. Jenny just placed a Snap Dragonite up to Seymour's lips and bit down hard on them. Seymour immediately pulled it off and looked at Jenny who was smiling lovingly at the red-lipped Seymour showing that he was forgiven and then she kissed him on the cheek instead of his now sore lips.

* * * * * *

"Oh Brock", sighed Stella as she gazed at every flower she could find, "Isn't this the most beautiful place we've ever been too?"

"You can say that again", said Brock who wasn't looking at the flowers. He was looking at every girl who was there.

"You're not looking at those girls are you?!" Stella demanded angrily.

"Oh no my sweet", said Brock nervously, "I'm just admiring all the pretty flowers with you. Don't they have such nice bosoms, I mean blossoms?"

Stella became so hurt that she slapped Brock hard. Everyone in the room suddenly stopped what they were doing and stared at the two. "I just don't know why I put up with this!" Stella cried, "I sometimes think you don't really love me and that the only reason we came together is because you were forced to be with me these past five years!" And she stormed out of the room while Jenny ran after her passing a purple-haried girl wearing a red kimono.

"Welcome home Miss Erika", said the blue-haired girl as she greeted her boss happily. Erika looked at some of the new and familiar faces and saw Brock hanging his head down in shame. "Did something happen that I should know about?" she asked.

After explaining what happened with Brock and Stella, Erika slowly approached Brock and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Yep, you're the same old Brock I met a few years back", she smiled, "And it looks like you've got a great girlfriend too."

"It doesn't look good though", moaned a sad Brock, "After what I pulled a few minutes ago."

"Are you sure you love her?" asked Erika.

"I..I think so", said Brock, "I just don't know why I'm still falling in love with every girl I see. Maybe she's right. Maybe we only fell in love because we were forced to be together. I just don't know!"

"I think I may have something that might help", smiled Erika as she took out a bottle of perfume. "Meet my latest creation." She smiled as stars suddenly surrounded the bottle, "Essence of Exeggcute. It's a special psychic perfume that can see into your heart and show you who your true love is. Care to try it?"

"Sure, I'll try anything", moaned Brock as he closed his eyes (If they weren't always closed already) and Erika sprayed him. He suddenly stood there quiet and motionless while everyone stared at him concerned.

"What did you do to him?" demanded Misty.

"Relax Misty", said Erika, "The effects will only last five minutes and when he wakes up, Brock will be a new man."

* * * * * *

Brock suddenly found himself in a void of darkness wondering what was going to happen. "Brock, I need to know. Do you really love me?" asked Stella who suddenly stepped out of the darkness wearing her old ringmaster's suit. "After all, you lost your best friend Ash to Team Rocket just to impress me."

Brock feeling very guilty at about what Stella said was about to speak until another voice called out. "What about me?" It was Rachel, the girl that Brock helped out when her father was too busy training his Hitmonchan to spend any time with her. "I thought we could've had something when you helped me with my father?"

"But I..." stuttered Brock, but before he could answer. Another girl appeared. It was Cassandra, the girl who loved making healing potions for Pokemon. "We both love taking care of Pokemon." She said sweetly, "That should makes us the best pair."

Brock was going crazy as one by one, all the pretty girls he met on his journey with Ash had appeared asking him which he loved the most. "Pick one of us!" called out all the Nurse Joys, "We've got our stethoscopes all warmed up for you!"

"No pick one of us!" called out all the Officer Jennies, "We've got handcuffs!"

"Brock, Brock, he's the rock! If you don't choose us we'll all be in shock!" cheered out Gary's cheerleading squad.

"I just don't know who to pick!!!" screamed Brock as he clutched his head in pain.

"Too bad", called out a familiar girl's voice. "That means we'll have to take them all away if you can't choose one!" Brock looked up in the air and found Jessie and James. Giant sized!!!

"These lovelies will go good in our collection", smiled James. "And I just bought the new line of Barbie beachwear!" The two Rockets started throwing Pokeballs all over the place catching every girl. Brock stood there wondering what to do. He then saw Stella get sucked into a ball while she was screaming in fear. Brock looked in rage as the ball containing Stella flew up to Jessie's hand.

"I think I'll put you in a Mr. Mime suit my little clown", smiled Jessie wickedly.

"NOOOOO!" cried Brock as he released his Golbat and Graveler. "Golbat, bite that witch's hand!" shouted Brock. Golbat flew at high speed biting hard on Jessie's hand causing her to yell and to drop the ball while she and James suddenly disappeared. The ball started to fall but luckily Graveler managed to catch it.

"Nice catch Graveler", said Brock relieved, "Now pry it open." Graveler ripped open the ball with its big rocky hands releasing Stella. Brock ran up to her and lifted her up into his arms.

"Oh Brock", said Stella, "You could've saved any one of those girls. Why choose me?"

"Because I love you Stella", smiled Brock as he kissed his one and only true love.

Brock suddenly woke up from his fantasy and found himself back in Erika's garden. "Oh thank you Erika!" shouted a happy Brock who was about to hug her, but instead gave her a handshake. "Your perfume has shown me that Stella is my one and only true love and I'm gonna do everything in my power to show her that!" and he left the garden to try to make things right with Stella.

* * * * * *

Now that things were peaceful again, the girls continued to spray poor Cameron with more of their perfume. Misty saw Cameron turning red with watery eyes and approached him. "Can I talk to my perfume lover alone for a minute please?" she asked politely as she dragged Cameron behind a group of shrubberies.

"Did that boy look kind of red to you?" asked the green-haired girl.

"Those two must be in love", winked the red-haired girl while laughing.

Misty handed Cameron a roll of tissues. "Thank you", he said while blowing his nose many times.

"Why are you letting them do this to you?" demanded Misty, "You're gonna make yourself sick if you keep sniffing all that perfume."

"I don't want to make them mad at me and get kicked out of this gym", sniffed Cameron. "Especially by Erika."

"Why hello you two", smiled Erika as she approached Cameron and held out her hand to him. Cameron politely shook hands with her, but with the one that wasn't covered with tissue snot though.

"You must be Cameron", smiled Erika, "The girls have been telling me that you've enjoyed all their perfume. I think that is so wonderful. Maybe later you can sample some of my strongest."

"Uh, yes. I'd like that", Cameron lied.

"Another lie like that and his nose will be big enough to let in all kinds of allergies", thought Misty.

"Is there anything else I can do to make your stay here a nice one?" asked Erika.

"Yes", said Cameron, "I'd like to try competing for a RainbowBadge please."

"But of course", said Erika, "Let me get my Pokemon ready and we'll have a friendly little batlle."

* * * * * *

A few minutes later, everyone was inside a huge arena seated onto benches excitedly waiting to see who'd win. Brock had made up with Stella and they were seated together. "Oh Brocky", she sighed, "I sure hope I can trust you in the future now that you assured me that I'm your one and only true love."

"Yes you are babe", smiled Brock as he put his arm around her. "And if you do catch me gawking at another girl, I give you permission to give me any kind of torture you feel I deserve."

"Any kind?" smiled Stella wickedly as she imagined herself whipping Brock who was dressed in a Persian suit making him jump through rings of fire.

Cameron was standing on one end of the arena waiting for Erika to arrive, and she did. She was out of her kimono and was wearing a blue squirtleneck with a red mini-skirt. "All right Cameron", she smiled, "How about we each use 3 Pokemon, no time limit?"

"Sounds good to me", said Cameron as he released his first Pokemon,  
"Buzz, I choose you!" and out popped Buzz saluting his master shouting, "BUZZ, EL, BUZZ!" and was ready to fight.

"That's a pretty tough looking Electabuzz you've got", said Erika, "But can it take on the power of Parasect?!" and she released a bug with a huge red mushroom on its back shouting out, "SECT!"

"Buzz, use thunder wave to paralyze Parasect", commanded Cameron.

"Parasect, send Buzz to slumberland with your spore attack", commanded Erika.

The two Pokemon launched their attacks at exactly the same time. And the result was one paralyzed Parasect and one sleeping Electabuzz.

"It looks like round 1 is a tie", said Erika as she sucked Parasect back into its ball while Cameron did the same with Buzz.

"Let's see if you can handle Exeggutor!" smiled Erika as she released a huge coconut tree with feet and funny looking faces on each large coconut.

"Zubat, I choose you", said Cameron and released Zubat who flew above the multi-faced tree. "Zubat, confuse that tree with supersonic", commanded Cameron.

"ZUUUUU", shouted Zubat as she started releasing her sonic waves.

"Exeggutor, use your psywave attack", commanded Erika. Exeggutor suddenly released a glowing psychic wave completely canceling out Zubat's supersonic and hitting her in the face.

"Zubat!" cried Cameron as he was about to call her back. But Zubat waved her wing and replied, "BAT!" showing him that she still had some fight in her. "Okay Zubat", said Cameron, "How about showing it up with wing attack."

"ZUUUU!" shouted Zubat as she dove at Exeggutor.

"Exeggutor, double team now!" commanded Erika. Exeggutor suddenly split into three coconut trees. Zubat flew at Exeggutor #1, but it disappeared for it was a fake. Zubat then tried to go after the Exeggutor on the right, but it was also a fake too.

"Let's give this Zubat a lovely bunch of coconuts", sang Erika, "Give it your barrage attack!"

"EGG!" shouted Exeggutor as it fired coconuts at Zubat who was trying her best to dodge out of the way.

"Double team some more on it", commanded Erika and Exeggutor split into 9 trees all trying to hit the poor Zubat with coconuts.

"What can I do?" wondered Cameron nervously then had an idea, "Zubat, mimic Exeggutor's double team!" called out Cameron. Zubat concentrated hard and immediately split into 9 Zubats. Each bat flew at an Exeggutor creating a huge cartoon fight cloud. Once the cloud disappeared, they found one Zubat perched on top of a fainted Exeggutor.

"This round goes to Cameron", called out the blue-haired girl while Cameron gave a thumbs up to his Zubat who replied with a wings up.

"Poor Exeggutor", sighed Erika as she called back the tree. "Lucky for you, I've saved my best for last. Go Gloom!" and she released a Gloom that looked almost like Cameron's.

"Oh boy", thought Cameron thankful that Erika's Gloom was way across the other side of the arena. "Zubat, use your leech life", he commanded.

"Gloom, use your stench attack", smiled Erika. "GLOOM", replied the Gloom as it let loose a powerful odor causing Zubat to fall onto the floor while covering her face with her wings. Everyone in the room covered their noses for the smell was terrible to them as well.

"Zubat, return!" commaned Cameron as he pulled Zubat back into her ball and then took out another one. "I may regret this, but it's the only thing I know that might be able to defeat her Gloom. Go my Gloom!" and he released his own Gloom.

"Uh oh", thought Misty, "Two Glooms in the room could mean Cameron's doom. Oh great, now I'm starting to sound like Seymour!"

Erika's Gloom sprayed its stench at Cameron's Gloom, but it had no effect. "You have a nice Gloom too Cameron", called out Erika smiling.

"Thank y.. y..., AACHOO!" sneezed Cameron.

"Bless you", said Erika, "Okay my Gloom. Why don't you invite that other Gloom to dance? Petal dance that is!"

"Gloom, Gloom!" smiled Erika's Gloom as it danced around shooting razor sharp petals at Cameron's Gloom. "GLOOM, GLOOM!!!" cried Cameron's Gloom waiting for its master to make a command, but Cameron was still sneezing like crazy to even talk.

"Why isn't Erika's Gloom falling down?" Misty asked Seymour, "I thought you said that Glooms could hurt themselves if they use petal dance?"

"I guess Erika trained hers in the ancient arts of petal dance", said Seymour.

"AACHOO, ACHOO!" sneezed Cameron trying to think of a way to save his Gloom then managed to come up with something. "Gloom, use body slam now, AACHOO!" he shouted.

"GLOOM!" shouted Cameron's Gloom as it ran at lightning speed to Erika's Gloom and slammed into it hard. "Oh no, GLOOM!" cried Erika as she ran up to her Gloom who was lying on the floor all paralyzed.

"Sorry about that, AACHOO!" called out Cameron while his Gloom waved at him feeling proud of itself.

"No problem and bless you!" smiled Erika as she picked up her Gloom and approached Cameron. "Well Cameron", she smiled, "It looks like the best Gloom won. Here's the RainbowBadge as proof of your victory." And she held up a badge that looked like a flower with rainbow colored petals.

"Thank, uh, thank, you-you-ACHOO!" sneezed Cameron and then started sneezing some more. Now that two Glooms were near him, it was just too much for his nose. He kept sneezing until he blacked-out.

* * * * * *

When Cameron woke up, he found himself lying on a bed with Nurse Joy right beside him along with his friends, Erika, and all her girls. "Hi", smiled Joy, "I hope you're feeling better. I just gave you a special sinus medicine so you could breathe again."

"Thank you", said Cameron who was glad that he had air going through his nose again.

"You really gave us quite a scare Cameron", said Erika, "When you fainted, I immediately called over Nurse Joy while my girls took you to my room. Misty told me that you were allergic to perfume and flower nectar. You should've told us that yourself instead of making yourself suffer like that."

"I just didn't want to offend any of you", said an ashamed Cameron, "I'm sorry."

"Misty also told me about what happened to Ash after he criticized my perfume", said Erika, "My girls had no business to ban him from my gym like that."

"And I'm sorry that you felt intimidated by me", said the blue-haired girl, "Miss Erika taught me better after that day. I even donated my trusty stamper to my cousin who's a network censor."

"You truly are a good trainer Cameron and a sweet person", smiled Erika, "And you've definitely earned that badge." Cameron looked down and found the RainbowBadge pinned on his shirt.

"I'm also surprised that some who's allergic to nectar keeps a really great Gloom", said Erika as she pointed to Cameron's Gloom who was peeking from the doorway feeling sad about what happened to its master.

"I know", sighed Cameron, "I just wish there was some way I can be close to it again."

"I'm sure you can if you evolve it into a Vileplume", smiled Erika.

"Really?" asked Cameron.

"Yes, that's right", said Seymour, "Unlike Glooms, Vileplumes have special sacks in their bodies that keep nectar from oozing out."

"But the only way you can get a Vileplume is if you expose a Gloom to a Leafstone", said Brock, "And we don't know where to get one."

"Look no further", smiled Erika as she pulled out a small stone with a leaf inside it and gave it to Cameron.

"Wow, a Leafstone!" smiled Cameron as he gazed at the stone, "But are you sure you want me to have this?"

"Sure", smiled Erika, "At first I bought it for my Gloom, but for some reason it refuses to touch it. So I thought you could use it for your Gloom."

"Thank you", smiled Cameron and then he called out to his Gloom. "Gloom", he asked, "Would you like me to evolve you into a Vileplume? That way we'd be close once again?"

"GLOOM!" cried out a happy Gloom as it hopped over to Cameron eagerly wanting to become a new and improved plant. Before Cameron could sneeze again, he put the stone against Gloom's body and all of a sudden, it started evolving. It grew bigger and the red bulb on its head sprouted into a huge red flower with extremely large petals. Cameron pulled out his Pokedex and aimed it at his new Pokemon.

"VILEPLUME, the evolved form of Gloom", replied Dexeena, "The larger the petals, the more toxic pollen it contains."

Cameron got near Vileplume and didn't even sneeze once. "It works!" he cried as he hugged his new Vileplume happily. "Thank you Erika! Things'll be better now that I got my relationship with it restored!"

"Vileplume!" smiled Vileplume as it started to do a happy dance but suddenly fell down. "VILE!" cried Vileplume as it tried to stand up, but toppled over upside-down again.

"Vileplume, what's wrong?" asked Cameron as he tried to help up his Pokemon but toppled over once again. Cameron took out his Pokedex.

"Vileplumes have the largest petals in the world", explained Dexenna, "In fact, they're so large and heavy. Some beginner Vileplumes have been known to keep falling over."

"Uh oh", said Erika, "Now I see why my Gloom didn't want to evolve."

* * * * * *

The next day, we find our heroes outside of the gym with Erika. "Yes, I remember there was a game center here in Celadon five years ago", said Erika. "Until a huge mystery explosion completely closed it down for good. It just now sits there abandoned and untouched at the very edge of the city." And she pointed east to where the game center was located.

"What caused such an explosion?" asked Jenny.

"Nobody knows", said Erika, "But no one ever dared to go back there."

"That means Giovanni might not be there anymore", said Misty, "What'll we do now?"

"We'll go to that abandoned game center and search around for clues", said Jenny, "There must be something there that might tell us where Giovanni or Ash is right now."

"Well I want to wish you luck on your quest", said Erika. "And I hope you get Ash back too."

"Yeah, especially me", thought Misty sadly.

"Goodbye Erika", smiled Cameron, "And thank you for giving me a great Vileplume."

"I'm just sorry that it keeps tipping over", said Erika.

"That's okay", smiled Cameron, "I'm gonna train it until it can stand on two feet again. I'm just glad that I can let it out of its Pokeball whenever I want to without sneezing."

"And thank you for helping me out with my relationship with Stella", said Brock as he wrapped his arm around his girl, "That Essence of Exeggcute is sure to make you a fortune."

"My pleasure", smiled Erika, "Why today I just sold 50 bottles."

"Now who would buy all that perfume in just one day?" asked Brock. Stella just secretly winked at Erika for she was the one who bought all that perfume just in case Brock would break his promise. "And it might be fun", Stella also thought while smiling sinisterly.

* * * * * *

At a harbor nearby Celadon City, a fisherman was fishing from a dock hoping to catch something really big. And he did. He reeled it up and found two pretty girls clutching onto the line along with a Meowth.

"Wow, I caught me a harem!" he smiled as he started taking pictures ready to take them home with him.

"Reiko, I believe this man of fish deserves a big hug, what do you say?" asked Jessie smiling.

"You're so right my queen", said Reiko who was smiling as well. But first you have to close your eyes."

"You got it my brides", said the man as he closed his eyes and waited for his hug. Reiko had Tentacruel grab him and squeeze him until his eyes popped open. Then it tossed the man right into a nearby fish stand. "I sure caught me a couple of feisty ones today!" said the man dazed, smelly, and happy.

"Now that we've had our fun for today", said Jessie, "Let's reel in some rebels before they reach Giovanni!"

"I was afraid you'd say that", thought Meowth not looking forward to seeing him pamper that Persian once again. Reiko too was afraid, afraid that it might be Cameron's last day of freedom.

TO BE CONTINUED 


	13. The Truth About Ash

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 13

The Truth About Ash

Team Rocket had managed to beat our heroes to a huge castle shaped building which was the abandoned Celadon game center that was actually their old hidden Rocket headquarters. "It's just as how I remembered it", sighed Meowth. "I wonder if Giovanni misses me."

"You can be sure that I'll never miss you!" said Jessie angrily as she whacked Meowth with her fan never missing his big head.

"Like the ice cream that melts when left out in the icebox too long, shall we go in or do we just stand here and bake in the sun?" asked Reiko wanting to get this over with.

"Yes, we must", said Jessie, "Before those rebels come in and bug our ex-boss before we have a chance to seize him" They approached the entrance to the game center and found it was surrounded by yellow tape reading, "POLICE LINE. DO NOT CROSS."

"Well, that solves our problem", said Meowth smiling, "When those dumb humans see that tape. They'll have no choice but to not go in."

"You dumb Meowth!" shouted Jessie as she whacked him with an even bigger fan. "Haven't you forgotten they have a cop with them? She's sure to let them through! We have to get in there before they arrive!"

"But what about all that harmful police tape that's blocking our way?" asked Meowth.

"Reiko", said Jessie, "How about protecting poor fragile Meowth from all that deadly tape?" Reiko silently nodded and sliced through the tape with her sword.

"She's indestructible!" gasped Meowth while Jessie and Reiko just sighed and then walked in.

Team Rocket silently looked around their old game room section where they saw all the familiar sights. The slot machines, the coin exchange booth, and the prize window containing toy Pokemon all old and mildewy. "I'm not sure if this Giovanni is here anymore", said Reiko.

"Don't be fooled by abandoned slots and misfit toys", said Jessie, "This is definitely the perfect hideout for someone like Giovanni. You never know how he operates."

"Hey look!" called out Meowth, "There's the first slot machine I ever rigged!" and he pounced and hugged a dusty old slot machine with a number 9 on it. "Let's see if it still has the old Meowth charm on it", he said as he took out a coin, inserted it into the slot and pulled the lever. Three Meowths suddenly appeared on the screen and Meowth eagerly waited for his pay. Instead of coins, out came catnip. "Ah, I hit the jackpot!" sighed a dizzy Meowth, "This baby may make humans miserable, but it sure brightens up my day!" and he sniffed it some more.

Reiko who was disgusted with Meowth immediately left him and went to look around. "AAAAAH!" screamed Jessie's voice. Reiko and Meowth followed her scream and found Jessie holding onto a big hole in the floor. "What da ya think you're doing?" asked Meowth.

"What does it look like you dumb furball?!" shouted Jessie, "Now pull me up unless you want me to fall to my doom!"

"Not so fast", smiled Meowth, "What's in it for me?"

Jessie just angrily flung up her legs, grabbed Meowth by the neck and was planning on dropping him. "Does this answer your question?" grumbled Jessie.

"I guess so", said Meowth nervously as he looked down at the darkness below. Reiko just sighed and pulled them both onto the floor.

"Now where do you suppose this ugly thing came from?" asked Jessie.

"Why do you always have to insult me all the time?!" whined Meowth.

"I was talking about that ugly hole in the floor", grumbled Jessie, "How dare you compare your ugliness to that poor hole's!"

"I think I see a much prettier one", said Reiko as she pointed to the ceiling and found another hole leading to the bright blue sky.

"Wait a minute", said Meowth, "I remember when leaving this place for good, James and I saw some weird kind of Pokemon blast out of the roof. Maybe Giovanni's too cheap and lazy to have all this fixed."

"I certainly doubt it", said Jessie, "He'd usually have one of us fix it for him. And during the holiday season too!"

"Shall we go down there and investigate?" asked Reiko as she took out some rope.

"No need to go down that dark and filthy hole my dear", smiled Jessie, "We'll just go down by our old secret passageway. Follow me", and she lead them to a painting on a wall that consisted of Growlithes sitting at a table playing poker. She tapped on a Growlithe's tongue and a hidden door right next to the painting started to open.

"Come my loyal Rocketeers", smiled Jessie as she marched downstairs while the others followed. The door behind them quickly closed up just as Cameron and friends had entered the game center.

"Look at this place", said Brock as he saw all the dust and mildew, "I don't think anyone's been around here for years to clean up this place."

"Which means Giovanni might not be here anymore", said Misty, "And neither is Ash!"

"But there might be something here that can give us a clue", said Jenny as she released her Growlithe. "Growlithe", she said, "I need you to sniff around for anything that might lead us to Ash or Giovanni."

"Growl!" woofed Growlithe as he started to sniff around.

"They say two noses are better than one", said Cameron, "Right Sandy?"

"Shrew!" replied Sandy as he started to sniff around as well. Everyone followed Growlithe and Sandy to a huge black hole in the floor with another huge hole in the ceiling.

"Someone must've had a blast here", said Stella.

"Hmmm", said Jenny, "This certainly calls for some investigating. We need some kind of strong rope to get down there."

"Why settle for strong rope when you can use a mighty Onix", smiled Brock as he released his giant rocky python. "Onix", commanded Brock. "How about making us a slide?" Onix roared as it slithered its head down into the darkness while keeping its tail onto the floor. "Last one down is a rotten Exeggcute!" smiled Brock as he slid down first. Everyone slid down Onix's back one by one until they were in complete darkness. "So who's the rotten Exeggcute?" called out Cameron.

"I don't know", said Brock, "I can't even see who came down here first."

"Clefable, use your flash attack please", called out Seymour. A burst of light filled the room and they found Clefable smiling while glowing brightly. "You always know how to brighten up my day", smiled Seymour as he hugged Clefable but got shocked from her light. "I gotta remember to think before I affectionate." Said a dazed Seymour.

"Let me do the thinking for both of us", smiled Jenny as she helped up her man and kissed him. Everyone looked around and found themselves in some huge Pokemon gym.

"I predict that some kind of powerful battle took place in this gym a long time ago", said Bill, "That's why there are big holes in the floor and ceiling."

"So where do we start looking now?" asked Misty. "I don't see any doors in this gym that'll lead us to anywhere."

"Good question", said Cameron.

* * * * * *

Meanwhile, Team Rocket reached the bottom of the stairs and came across a long hallway with lots of colored tiles on the floor. "I guess it's time to put our best paw forward", said Meowth proudly as he walked forward. But then, Meowth started spinning like crazy all over the room like a small tornado. He was bouncing off walls until he got sent back to Jessie and Reiko all dizzy.

"I don't think I was tall enough to get on that ride", said a dazed Meowth.

"That's right, I forgot", grumbled Jessie. "These floors are filled with spinning tiles to keep intruders out of Giovanni's quarters. We Rockets had to memorize a special walking code whenever we had to report to him."

"Do you remember the code my queen?" asked Reiko.

"Well no", said Jessie, "It's been a long time since I've last been here that I've completely forgotten it!"

"And it looks like Meowth-san's forgotten it as well", said Reiko pointing to the dazed cat.

"So how do we get across now?" asked Meowth.

"Like the Diglett that digs tunnels when annoying highways get in their way. I've just devised a way across!" said Reiko as she released her Tentacruel. "Tentacruel", she asked, "I need you to do something different for me." And she started whispering in its ear.

"Cruel" replied Tentacruel as it stuck itself onto the ceiling with its sticky tendrils and grabbing Reiko, Jessie, and Meowth with its others. Then Tentacruel started crawling upside-down on the ceiling until they were across that tricky floor. Then it released the two girls down onto their feet while Meowth landed on his face.

"I could swear that your Tentacruel hates me", grumbled Meowth as he rubbed his red face.

"You are a very hateful creature Meowth", said Reiko while patting Tentacruel on the head.

"See that door?" asked Jessie, "Behind that door is Giovanni's office. I can still smell the aroma of money and brass knuckles through the crack."

"Shall we go in and brag to him and that stupid Persian about how we're now royalty and they're only loser trillionares?" smiled Meowth.

"But first, let's release all our Pokemon", said Jessie, "Just in case he has some thugs, weapons, or Pokemon protecting him." Reiko released her Kingler along side her Tentacruel while Jessie released her Arbok and Lickitung. Meowth took out a nail file and started sharpening his claws.

"One, two, THREE!!!" screamed all three at once as they burst down the door. When they all stepped inside, they were in Giovanni's office, but with no Giovanni! There were dust and cobwebs all over his desk, his phone had over a thousand saved messages, and there were even tiny little Venonats nibbling on what was left of the money on his desk.

"If Giovanni's still here, he sure has a skilled way of not showing it", said Reiko.

"I guess Giovanni's really has abandoned his headquarters" said Jessie as she looked down at the closed trap door where Giovanni used to drop his ex-thugs. "I wonder if he took that Gyarados with him?"

"Just as long as that Persian's not here either", said Meowth. Just then, they heard a mournful, "MEOW!"

"What's wrong with you?" asked Jessie, "Are you still whining that you didn't get chosen for the part of new Morris?"

"That wasn't me", said Meowth. They all went over to the back of the desk and found something underneath it.

"It's Giovanni's old Persian", gasped Jessie. And sure enough it was. Persian was looking very terrible. His fur was all dirty, his eyes were crusty, he was extremely skinny, and he was eating a small pile of garbage.

"It looks like my ex-master dumped you as well." said Meowth concerned. "I feel for you pal. NOT!" and he started laughing out loud. "Now you know how it feels to be the bottom cat! Huh, you little spoiled brat cat!" and he started plucking out Persian's whiskers. Jessie and Reiko both just shook their heads wishing that their partner were a quiet Persian instead of a loudmouth Meowth.

Persian could finally take it no more when Meowth grabbed his only wishbone and gulped it down. He jumped at Meowth and started slashing him like crazy.

"Lickitung!" commanded Jessie, "Wrap up that Persian!" Lickitung complied by sticking out its long tongue and pulling Persian off of the red scratched Meowth.

"Red is my favorite color!" said Meowth looking at his scratches.

"What should we do with him?" asked Reiko looking at the poor Persian who was wrapped up tight in Lickitung's tongue.

"I'd say we stick him in this low rent Pokeball with no cable, no air conditioning, and no roach motels!" cackled Jessie as she pulled out a brown, dirty, busted Pokeball. "What do you say to that you fleabag?"

Persian just smiled and let out a screeching noise. Everyone covered their ears while Lickitung let go of Persian causing him to run out the door.

"He's getting away!" shouted Meowth.

"Well then let's get after him!" shouted Jessie as she, Reiko, Meowth, and all their Pokemon charged after the Persian down the hallway. However, they did forget about all those spinning tiles and the two girls, along with Meowth, Arbok, Lickitung, Tentacruel, and Kingler started spinning around the hallway knocking each other around like pinballs. "They should really install barf bags on these walls!" cried a spinning Meowth.

Luckily for Persian, he knew where all the spinning tiles were located so he was able to escape from them easily. Persian then came across a huge door with a screen and a pawprint on the bottom. He placed his paw on the screen and the door opened.

* * * * * *

Cameron and his friends suddenly saw a door slide open on the right side of the gym. "Be on your guard everyone!" said Jenny, "Those could be Rocket's coming in!" Everyone got their Pokemon ready for battle. Cameron had Sandy, Brock had Onix, Jenny had Growlithe, Stella had Tangela, Seymour had Clefable, Bill had himself, but just as Misty was about to send out her Starmie, Psyduck immediately popped out of his Pokeball and materialized on the top where the game room was. Psyduck looked down the hole and waved hi and "Psy" to Misty.

"What's with you?!" screamed Misty, "Not only do you pop out whenever I don't want you to. You also pop out at the wrong place! I'm right down here you dumb duck!"

"PSY-YAI-YAI!" cried Psyduck as he ran around the game room looking for some place to hide until his master cooled down.

"Maybe its best he doesn't come down here", sighed Misty. Just then a shadow cast all over the gym's floor and everyone looked cautiously at what was at the other end of that shadow. Everyone then became relieved when they saw what it was. Everyone but Bill that is.

"Hey, you're Giovanni's Persian aren't you?" asked Cameron.

Persian let out another mournful meow as he staggered into the gym looking for protection.

"Oh you poor thing", said Stella as she patted the poor cat, "It looks like you haven't eaten in weeks, or even years."

"Let's hope he doesn't have mouse on his menu", whispered Bill as he hid behind Cameron's legs. But unfortunately, Persian did see Bill and he pounced on him very quickly. Then Persian nipped Bill's tail and started to run out of the room with him. "Somebody do something please", called out a nervous Bill, "If anyone doesn't mind!"

"Tangela, bind that kitty!" commanded Stella. Tangela complied by shooting out its vines and wrapping Persian up like a green cocoon causing him to drop Bill on the floor.

"Stella, you do care about me!" smiled Bill with tears in his eyes.

"I care for the human part of you", said Stella, "But the rodent part is a different story." She then approached Persian and fed him a big can of tuna. Once Persian was all filled up, Stella ordered Tangela to release Persian and he walked up to Stella and stroked himself against her legs saying, "Thank you." "Wow, I guess treating Pokemon right does seem to help", smiled Stella, "And it feels good too!"

Cameron smiled at what Stella said and looked at the happy Persian who seemed to have lost his evil streak for good. "Maybe he can lead us to Giovanni", he said.

"Maybe so", said Jenny as he approached Persian who was being stroked by Stella. "All right cat", she said in her bad cop voice, "We want answers and we want them now. Where's your master located?"

"Meow, purr, purr, meow", replied Persian in his native tongue. Everyone had forgotten that this wasn't the talking Meowth they all know and hate.

"If we only had an interpreter with us", said Brock.

"But we do", smiled Seymour as he sent Clefable over to Persian. She placed her finger on Persian's forehead like she did to James in a recent chapter and all of Persian's meows became translated into pictures above him.

START OF FLASHBACK:

It showed Giovanni yelling at Jessie, James, and Meowth for bringing them a kid instead of a Mr. Mime. He pushed a button and Team Rocket fell through a trap door. "What did you do to them?!" gasped Ash who was still in the bottom half of the Mr. Mime suit all tied up.

Gio quickly calmed down and smiled at the boy. "Oh, don't worry about those three", he smiled, "We'll never have to worry about them destroying the world with their idiocy ever again. HA HA HA!" Ash gulped wondering what was this scary man was going to do to him.

"Don't you think it's kind of early for Halloween son?" smiled Gio, "Terrible things could happen to you if you go around pretending to be something you're not! As you can plainly see. Exactly who are you?"

"Ash Ketchum", said Ash nervously.

"Not thee Ash Ketchum!" said Gio surprised. "The one with that supposedly powerful Pikachu? The Ash that those three simpletons kept going on about and trying to catch? You're that Ash Ketchum?!"

"Yes", trembled Ash.

"This is truly an honor", smiled Gio as he stroked his Persian. "Please forgive me for my rudeness. I suppose you'd like to stretch your arms out right now. He pushed a button on his desk and Ash quickly shut his eyes thinking he'd get sent down a trap door as well.

"Boys, get our little friend out of that restraining costume will you?" smiled Gio. Ash opened his eyes and found two strong Rocket thugs grabbing him, untying him and getting him out of the Mr. Mime costume until he was back in his black shirt, blue jacket, and jeans. He then felt his head and found something missing.

"WAAUGGH!" he cried, "My hat is gone!"

"Oh dear", said Gio, "I guess it went down with the blunder brigade. But don't despair, the world's full of other great hats."

"But I sent in a million postcards to win that hat!" cried Ash. "It's a Pokemon League expo-hat!"

"Oh, so you're the one who prevented me from getting that hat!" said Gio a little annoyed, "I only sent in 999,999 postcards. But I suppose the best man won. But as runner up, I deserve a prize as well. Give me his Pokeballs!"

The thugs grabbed Ash, removed his Pokebelt from his waist, and handed it to their boss. "No, they're my friends!" he wailed as he was trying to break free from the first thug's grip but with no luck. Gio just silently took out a little x-ray spyglass and examined each of Ash's Pokeballs.

"Let's see", he said, "We have here a Pidgeotto, a Bulbasaur, a Squirtle, and a Charizard. Say, where's that famous Pikachu of yours?"

"I'd never tell someone like you!" shouted Ash.

"We shall see about that", smiled Gio, "Search him some more!" The two thugs searched through all of Ash's pockets and found no Pokeball that contained a Pikachu.

"Hey, look boss", said the second thug as he held open Ash's coat, "This kid's got all the gym badges!"

"Yes", said Gio as he curiously approached Ash. "Even one of my EarthBadges!" and he yanked the EarthBadge off of Ash's coat.

"Hey, I earned that one fare and square!" Ash shouted angrily.

"How, by defeating three of my most pathetic Rockets?" laughed Gio, "If you want this badge back, you'll have to defeat the real gym leader of the Viridian gym. And do you know who that might be?"

"YOU?!" gasped Ash.

"Bingo!" smiled Gio. "You're looking at Giovanni, the all powerful head of Team Rocket, the most dangerous criminal empire in the world. And the leader of the Viridian City gym on weekends to pay off my income taxes. And I'm gonna make you a little deal. If you can beat me in a Pokemon match, not only will I'll give you back the EarthBadge, I'll personally send you back home to your loving mother."

"And if you win?" asked Ash.

"Then I'll personally send you back home to your loving mother so you can give me your Pikachu!" smiled Gio evily.

"There's no way I'm gonna be doing that!" shouted Ash. "You can keep your stupid EarthBadge. Pikachu's more important to me!"

"But if you don't battle with me", smiled Gio, "I'll personally send you back home to your loving mother as a big bowl of chili! No doubt she'll die of a heart attack, not to mention heartburn when we force her to eat you."

Ash realized he had no choice. He had to battle for his mother's sake and he had to win for Pikachu's sake as well. "You're on!" he said.

* * * * * *

Next, we find Ash and Gio inside a huge gym, which happened to be the same one that our heroes stumbled into. Gio had given Ash back his Pokebelt and was sitting in his luxury chair stroking his Persian while Ash was on the other side.

"All right Ash", said Gio politely, "We'll each use 4 Pokemon, no time limit. What do you say?"

"Do I have a choice?" asked Ash.

"No, not really", said Gio, "Just making conversation. Now go ahead and release your first Pokemon."

"Okay, I choose Bulbasaur", shouted Ash as he was about to turn his hat around but then remembered he didn't have it anymore. A little frog like Pokemon with a huge seed on its back materialized onto the floor. "Bulba!" it shouted.

"Ah, the mighty Bulbasaur", smiled Gio, "But can it handle the even mightier Rhydon?!" and he released a gigantic rhino with a horn that looked like a drill. "Rhydon", commanded Gio, "Use your horn drill!" Rhydon's horn started to spin around ready to burrow into the tiny Bulbasaur.

"Bulbasaur, use your leech seed!" shouted Ash. Bulbasaur concentrated hard and shot a tiny seed from its back and it plopped right onto Rhydon's horn. Vines started to sprout out of the seed covering up Rhydon's face while sucking the very energy out of it. "Now give it your solarbeam!" commanded Ash. Bulbasaur started to glow a bright sunny color and then let loose a powerful beam hitting Rhydon in the stomach causing it to roar and faint.

"Not bad kid", said Gio as he called back his Rhydon. "But can you handle Kangaskhan?!" and he released a huge monstrous kangaroo who howled out, "Kangas-Kangas-Kangaskhan!!!"

"Bulbasaur, use your vine whip!" commanded Ash.

"Bulba!" shouted Bulbasaur as it shot out some strong vines and wrapped them tightly around Kangaskhan's wrists.

"Kangaskhan", said Gio, "Dizzy punch now!" Kangaskhan started to spin around like a top while sticking its arms out. Bulbasaur couldn't hold on anymore and it ended up hitting the wall.

"Bulbasaur!" cried Ash. He quickly pulled the knocked-out Bulbasaur back into its ball and took out another one. "Pidgeotto, I choose you!" and he released a large pigeon who made a loud cooing sound.

"Kangaskhan", said Gio, "Give it your comet punch!" Kangaskhan started shooting fists of energy from its hands while the quick Pidgeotto easily dodged each blow.

"Pidgeotto, use razor wind now!" commanded Ash. Pidgeotto flapped its wings very hard and released two strong blades of air knocking Kangashkan onto the ground.

"Congratulations again", said Gio as he sucked Kangaskhan back into its Pokeball. "You truly are something. Maybe I was wrong to punish Jessie, James, and Meowth for all the trouble you put them through. Oh well, it's too late to make it up to them now. And we still have a match to finish. Go Marowak" and he released a reptile like creature with a skull on the outside of its head and carrying a huge bone in its hand.

"Marowak?" asked Ash as he took out his Pokedex named Dexter. "MAROWAK. The bonekeeper Pokemon, the evolved form of Cubone", replied Dexter. "The bone it holds is its key weapon. The Marowak throws the bone skillfully like a boomerang to KO its targets."

"Marowak, use your bonemerang attack!" commanded Gio.

"WAK!" shouted Marowak as it threw its bone at Pidgeotto. "Quick Pidgeotto, get out of the way!" shouted Ash. Pidgeotto cooed and flew out of the bone's path. But unfortunately, Pidgeotto didn't count on the boomerang technique of the bone and it hit Pidgeotto on the head knocking it out.

"Oh no, not again!" cried Ash as he put another unconscious Pokemon back into its ball. "Squirtle, I choose you!" shouted an angry Ash as he released a tiny turtle with a cute curly tail. "Squirtle, squirt!" it replied.

"Marowak, take care of that little squirt with your bone club", said Gio.

"WAK!" shouted Marowak as it charged up to Squirtle ready to conk it flat.

"Squirtle, withdraw now!" shouted Ash. Squirtle quickly ducked into its protective shell just before Marowak could bonk it on the head.

"That's it Marowak", said Gio, "Keep conking it until its protected no more!" Marowak started to conk on Squirtle's shell non-stop until it looked like it was about to crack.

"I've gotta do something!" thought Ash, "Squirtle, give it a quick bubble attack in the eyes!" he shouted. Squirtle managed to pull its head out and shoot a few tiny bubbles into Marowak's eyes. "MARO!" cried Marowak who became blinded and dropped his bone. "Okay Squirtle", said Ash, "Finish it off with skull bash!" Squirtle ducked its head down and charged at high speed slamming Marowak in the stomach causing it to faint.

"Good job Squirtle!" called out Ash.

"Squirtle, squirt!" called out a proud Squirtle.

"You're even tougher than I thought", said Gio smiling his most evilest of smiles. "Let's see if you're good enough to take on the world's most strongest Pokemon!" He pushed a button on his chair and a door slid open. Out stepped some kind of new Pokemon. It was 6 feet tall, colored white with a purple stomach along with a long purple tail. And it had the head of a cat with scary glowing eyes. Ash and Squirtle stood in fear at the sight of this new monster.

"What is that?!" asked Ash as he nervously aimed his Pokedex at the beast.

"Pokemon cannot be identified", was all that Dexter could say.

"Awestruck, aren't you?" smiled Gio as he stood up and approached his Pokemon. I'd like you to meet Mewtwo. The world's first genetically cloned Pokemon. My scientists have finally made my evil dream come true and created the ultimate fighting machine. Mewtwo, show them your magic!"

Mewtwo just silently lifted Ash up in the air with his psychic powers and started to spin him around like a ballet dancer. "What kind of Pokemon is this?" shouted a helpless Ash.

"SQUIRTLE!" cried Squirtle as it grabbed onto Ash's foot trying to pull him back down. Then Ash suddenly found his mouth getting pulled back until his gums and teeth were showing.

"No Mewtwo, don't turn him inside out today", said Gio, "I just had the floor cleaned." Mewtwo set Ash and Squirtle back onto the ground a little shaken up, but unharmed.

"Shall we battle now or do you surrender?" laughed Gio.

"Never!" shouted Ash, "Squirtle, use your water gun now!" Squirtle quickly shot a jet of water at Mewtwo, but Mewtwo just used his psychic powers to split the water gun in two firing it back at Ash and Squirtle knocking them into the wall.

"Squirtle, return", said Ash as he called back the poor waterlogged turtle.

"You've got one Pokemon left", smiled Gio, "This better be your best one. For your sake!" Ash looked at the Pokeball that contained Charizard. He hated to call out that disobedient lizard, but he had no other choice.

"Charizard, you've gotta win this one for me!" shouted Ash as he released the giant winged lizard. But Charizard just ignored Ash and plopped down on the floor with no intention of battling. "Charizard!" cried Ash, "This is no time to be a jerk! This is a life and death situation for all of us!"

"Char", scoffed Charizard showing that it didn't give a Raticate's butt.

"I think this is the perfect time to test out that new attack of yours. Eh, Mewto?" smiled Gio. "Give it your mindjail attack!" Mewtwo quickly shot a psychic beam at Charizard causing it to become paralyzed. It roared as it started to shrink down into a tiny lizard no bigger than an ant. Ash looked in fear as Mewtwo pulled the tiny Charizard into his forehead.

"Mindjail is a complete success!" laughed Gio out loud. "You're witnessing Pokemon history kid."

Ash just charged up at Mewtwo teary eyed and started banging on his stomach. "What did you do to my Charizard?!" he sobbed, "Give it back! I demand to see it now!!!" Mewtwo smiled and decided to grant the boy his wish. He shot his mindjail beam at Ash and started to shrink him down as well. "NOOOOOO!" Ash screamed as he got pulled into Mewtwo's head.

"Excellent work my friend", smiled Gio as he patted Mewtwo on the back. "Now you can release the boy. I need him to take me to a valuable Pikachu. But Mewtwo turned his back on his master for he didn't want to release Ash.

"What are you doing?!" demanded an annoyed Gio. "I gave you a direct order!" Mewtwo just ignored Gio again and it looked like he was about to leave. "It looks like I'll have to teach you some discipline!" Shouted Gio as he was about to pull Mewtwo into a Pokeball. Mewtwo sensed what his master was about to do and shot a psychic blast at Gio knocking him back into his chair. Then he used his mindjail beam on Gio adding him to his collection of prisoners.

Feeling satisfied, Mewtwo suddenly blasted off like a rocket shooting a hole through the roof of the gym and through the roof of the game center as well. Everybody in the game center screamed in panic wondering what that thing was that disappeared into the sky while down below the gym, a sad Persian watched his beloved master disappear forever.

END OF FLASHBACK:

"So that's what happened to Ash", said Brock quietly as Clefable took her finger off the now sleeping Persian.

"Trapped in that awful Mewtwo's mind for five years?!" gasped Misty. "And with that horrible Giovanni too! I wouldn't wish that fate on anyone. Not even a little creep like Ash!" and a tear ran down her face.

"Well now that we know what happened to Ash", said Seymour, "All we have to do is find this Mewtwo, defeat him, and make him give back Ash."

"But we don't even know where this Mewtwo is right now", said Stella, "Cameron, would you know from your TV show or game where he might be hiding?"

"I don't know about the cartoon", replied Cameron, "But I did hear from my Gameboy strategy guide that Mewtwo hides out in the Unknown Dungeon in Cerulean City."

"I think that might be a problem", said Misty, "Many years ago, the Unknown Dungeon got filled up with cement by order of the city. There were complaints about too many dangerous Pokemon popping out and terrorizing the citizens."

"If I could only find some clue that could lead us to this Mewtwo", said Jenny.

"Haven't you forgotten how powerful Mewtwo is?" asked Bill, "I don't think all our Pokemon combined are a match for this psycho-menace!"

"I know", smiled Cameron, "We can ask Sabrina the psychic. Maybe she can use her powers to locate Mewtwo and also come along with us. Maybe her powers, along with her psychic and ghost Pokemon can defeat Mewtwo."

"Yes, that's right", said Seymour happily, "Psychic attacks would be great against Mewtwo's own and ghost Pokemon are completely immune to psychic attacks."

"Well shall we all head off to Saffron City to see if we can recruit Sabrina?" asked Jenny. Everyone said "Aye", while Misty and Brock stood there nervously. They remembered when they last met Sabrina. She was a cold and scary girl who turned people into dolls if they lost to her. Misty could still feel the cotton in her veins.

"All opposed?" asked Jenny. "NAY!!!" shouted three voices. They all turned around and found Team Rocket who just burst into the gym with the help of all their Pokemon. They made their usual motto while Cameron stared at the lovely Reiko.

"Hi Reiko", he said shyly.

"Oh shut up you four-eyed geek!" shouted Reiko in a mean voice then winked at him. Cameron became a little hurt but then realized she only said that so her teammates wouldn't suspect that she had a thing for him.

"So you poor little things weren't able to find Giovanni", said Jessie wickedly.

"Yeah, and all you found was the booby prize", laughed Meowth, "That grungy little Persian."

"He's not grungy!" protested Stella as she stroked the Persian's head while he made a happy purring sound.

"Oh no!" wailed Meowth, "I'm watching him getting pampered again! And this time by a pretty human girl! WAAAAAH!" Stella just blushed at what Meowth said about her while Jessie whacked him again with a king-sized fan.

"Get over yourself!" shouted Jessie. "Cause no one will be pampering this Persian ever again. It'll be going into a little cramped cage along with our little rebel friends."

"That's what you think!" shouted Jenny. "Let's all attack together!" Sandy, Starmie, Onix, Tangela, Growlithe, Clefable, and even Bill charged at the Rockets and their Pokemon ready to defend their masters.

"Arbok, toxic attack!" commanded Jessie. Arbok leapt in front of the seven Pokemon and sprayed a toxic cloud all over the group. Everyone watched in horror as they saw their Pokemon faint one-by-one.

"I regret that I only have one life to give to my country", coughed Bill, "Actually I have two lives cause I'm sharing my life with my Rattata." And then he fainted.

"Now let's say we take care of the human population. Right guys?" asked Meowth. Jessie and Reiko commanded all their Pokemon to seize everyone. Arbok wrapped up Brock and Stella, Lickitung tied up Misty with its gross, sticky tongue, Kingler clamped onto Seymour and Jenny, and Tentacruel seized Cameron.

"HA HA HA!" cackled Jessie, "It looks like your days of freedom fighting's finally over!"

Reiko walked up to the wrapped up Cameron and whispered in his ear. "I'm sorry Cameron-san", said Reiko, "This is not how I wanted us to meet again." And she gave him a quick private kiss on the cheek.

"Neither did I", Cameron whispered and kissed her back.

"Hey Reiko, what are you telling that brat?" asked Meowth.

"Oh nothing", said Reiko, "I'm just telling the little fool about the torments we have planned for him and his friends the minute we get back. I like putting the fear of Rocket in pathetic rebels."

"Hey, will you look at that?" said Jessie. They all saw Persian coughing up a pile of gold coins. "That Persian knows pay day!" she shouted with dollar signs in her eyes. "Don't just gawk there you two, we gotta collect all that currency!"

"I could learn pay day too if I wanted to", sighed Meowth as he gathered up the coins, "I just don't feel like it right now." The truth was he couldn't learn pay day for he used up all that energy just learning how to talk.

As they were gathering up all the coins, Reiko's keen eyesight suddenly saw Persian jump onto the boss's old chair pushing a button on the armrest. She had this feeling and immediately stepped away from the coin pile. Suddenly a trap door opened and all the coins fell through it along with Jessie and Meowth. Arbok and Lickitung heard their master scream as she fell down the trap. They released their captives and jumped down into the trap after her. "Yes, there's nothing like a loyal Pokemon", said Reiko as she ordered Tentacruel and Kingler to release their captives as well. Then she pulled them back into their Pokeballs.

"You're setting us free?" asked Misty. "But aren't you an evil Rocket?"

"Like the vegetarian pizza that secretly hides a pepperoni under a large mushroom. Things aren't always what they seem", said Reiko.

"Maybe Reiko is on our side after all", said Brock.

"What are you going to do now Reiko?" asked Cameron, "Join us I hope?"

"No I can't Cameron-san", sighed Reiko sadly, "I must go after them for I'm still under ninja's oath to serve my queen. But it still was great to see you again Cameron-san."

"Well, I'm going to make sure that you two stay together through this entire journey", smiled Jenny as she took out her handcuffs. "Reiko, you're definitely under arrest."

"Sorry, but nothing is ever definite", smiled Reiko as she took out a smoke bomb and covered everything in a black cloud. Cameron felt a quick kiss on the cheek and then the smoke cleared. They found Reiko gone, the trap door shut, and Jenny with a discouraged look on her face.

* * * * * *

Reiko had jumped down the trap door, slid down a long slide and landed in a pool of shallow water. She saw Jessie and Meowth holding each other in shock staring at the face of the Gyarados that tried to eat them five years ago. "Why are you frightened?" asked Reiko. "That is only a skeleton of a Gyarados. It must've died since Giovanni wasn't around all these years to feed it."

"It's not that", whined Meowth, "It's just that all our coins fell down that tiny drain on the bottom!" and he and Jessie let out a mournful, "WAAAAAAAH!" Reiko just sighed as she dragged them into the nearby sewer pipe that lead them to freedom.

* * * * * *

Our heroes were busy healing their poisoned Pokemon thanks to a jumbo pack of full restore potions. "Are you all right Sandy?" asked Cameron.

"Shrew!" smiled Sandy who gave him his trademark claws up.

"How about you Bill?" asked Misty who just gave him a sip of potion.

"I thought I saw my whole life flash in front of me", gasped Bill, "I was the eighteenth child of a family of a hundred so I could hardly get any of my mother's milk, so I had to raid this girls' dorm... No wait!" said Bill blushing, "That was my Rattata's life, not mine."

After Stella got her Tangela healed, she felt something rub against her arm. It was Persian. He purred happily at her and offered her a gold coin. "Aw, that's so sweet of you", smiled Stella, "It is kind of sad that you have a great pay day attack but no way of spending it for food. Would you like me to adopt you so you'll never grow hungry again?"

"PUUUURRR!" said Persian.

"You got it kitty", smiled Stella as she hugged both her old Tangela and her new Persian.

"Is there room in that hug for one more?" asked Brock winking at her. Tangela thought that Brock was talking about it so it grabbed Brock with its vines and hugged him hard. Both Stella and Persian just giggled.

* * * * * *

Onix had just lifted our heroes back into the game center above. "I guess it's time all we head to Saffron City to see Sabrina", said Jenny.

"I hope you don't mind if Giovanni's Persian comes with us", said Stella as she held up the ball that contained him.

"Just let me know when you're about to release him", said Bill, "I don't need a near-death experience every day!"

"Don't worry Bill", smiled Stella, "I'm gonna feed him so much he won't ever require a taste for you again."

"Speaking of bad taste", said Misty, "Where's my Psyduck?"

"Over there", said Cameron. They saw Psyduck at one of slot machines gambling and losing a lot of coins. Misty approached the duck with a red boiling face.

"Why do you always do this to me?!!" she screamed while shaking him around, "While we're all getting our butts kicked by Team Rocket, you're up here gambling away all my hard earned cash! Do you delight in making me miserable all the time?!"

"PSY-YAI-YAI!!!" cried Psyduck as coins dropped from his body from all that shaking. "Psyduck?" said Misty surprised. "You mean those coins were yours all along? You know pay day too?"

"I believe he does now", said Seymour as he found a device on the floor and picked it up. "This is TM 16, the pay day device. Your Psyduck must've found it and activated it."

"Oh, you wonderful duckling!" smiled Misty as she hugged her Psyduck. "I promise I'll never yell at you again. At least for today!"

"Psy", smiled Psyduck.

After that, our heroes left the game center and were on their way to yet another new quest. To find the dangerous Mewtwo and rescue Ash. Can they do it? Let us pray!"

TO BE CONTINUED 


	14. Cameron's Psychic Shock

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 14

Cameron's Psychic Shock

Today we find Cameron and his friends riding bicycles down a dirt path on their way to Saffron City. They had gotten the bikes from the Celadon City dept. store. Cameron was happily pedaling his new red bike with Sandy happily riding in the basket up front. Jenny was smiling at Seymour who had training wheels on the back of his bike. "That man never ceases to amuse me!" thought Jenny smiling.

"I don't see why we have to ride these things", whined Misty, "I prefer the van."

"I told you", said Jenny, "My middle sister who worked in Celadon isn't there anymore. So I couldn't borrow another van from her. We were lucky the dept. store had a special sale on six bikes for the price of one."

"And besides", said Brock, "You've been going on and on about how Ash wrecked your old bike. Well you've got a new one now so for once stop your complaining!"

"Ash", sighed Misty still thinking about the situation he was in now. Being trapped in the mind of Mewtwo for five years with probably no chance of ever escaping. "Uh, Misty", called out Bill who was riding in Misty's front basket. "Are you all right? Answer me please. That look on your face is making your co-pilot here nervous!"

Misty suddenly became teary eyed. She stopped, picked up Bill, and put him in Cameron's basket along with Sandy. "Misty, what are you doing?" asked Bill surprised.

"You all go on your journey without me", she stuttered as she turned around. "All of a sudden I've become homesick and I miss my sisters! Bye everyone!" and she pedaled in the other direction as fast as she could.

"MISTY, WAIT!" shouted out Cameron as he and the others pedaled after her. Misty kept pedaling through a bumpy road that caused her to stumble, fall down, and hurt her knee. Everyone gathered around her as she cried her heart out.

"Are you all right Misty?" asked Brock worriedly, "I'm sorry for what I said to you back there."

"It's not that", sobbed Misty, "It's just the only reason that I was ever on these journeys to begin with was so that Ash could pay me back for my bike! Now that I have a new one, there's no reason for me to stay on this quest. I'm sorry everyone!" and she started to cry.

Cameron just bent down and looked at the scraped knee that was showing through a rip in her jeans. He took out a bandage from his backpack and applied it to the wound. "Are you sure that's the only reason you stuck with Ash all this time?" he asked. "To tell you the truth, I don't think he was ever going to pay you back for that bike."

"What are you saying?!" asked Misty in a now ballistic voice. "Do you actually think that I have a thing for that little egotistical creep?!"

"It is hard to tell with the way you keep staring off into space and sighing every time we mention Ash's name", said Stella. And sure enough, Misty did right on cue.

"I guess you're right", said Misty quietly, "I'm just feeling guilty about what happened to Ash all those years ago. I wanted to go and rescue him but instead I went off to have lunch with his mother thinking he could get out of that mess himself. But instead I got trapped in his town for five years comforting his poor mother. And now that I've heard where Ash is now, the guilt has totally increased! Oh, what have I done to my dearest friend?!!!" and waterfalls started gushing out of Misty's eyes. Cameron couldn't help feel sorry for poor Misty. At first he hated her, and Brock and Stella for abandoning Ash like that. But now he could see that Misty was truly sorry. Sorry than she could ever imagined.

"Please don't feel that way", said Brock catching the tears in a canister. "All this was mostly my fault. I was the one who put Ash in that Mr. Mime suit and got him in this mess to begin with."

"And mine too", said Stella as she placed her hands on Misty's shoulders. "I now see the consequences of mistreating Pokemon along with generous humans disguised as ones."

"But we're gonna make it up to him now!" said Brock, "We're gonna track down this Mewtwo, make him release Ash, and head back so we can free Pallet and reunite him with his dear mother. And we could really use you on our rescue team Misty."

"Please rejoin us Misty", said Seymour, "We're all on the same quest and we need all the help we can get."

"What do you say Misty?" smiled Cameron, "And once we get Ash back. You can go back to putting him down which always seems to make you happy."

"Shrew", said Sandy as he approached Misty and slurped her hand.

Misty wiped away her tears, stood up, and said, "Well why are we all sitting around here for? Let's get going. The sooner Ash is back in my sight, the sooner I get to torment him!" and she got on her bike, put Bill back in the basket, and lead the way.

"Are you sure you're gonna be all right Misty?" asked Bill.

"Don't worry about me Bill", smiled Misty. "You just sit back and enjoy the ride. And make sure that any bugs don't fly between your teeth."

"Too late", moaned Bill as he looked down at his two huge fangs.

* * * * * *

Our heroes had finally arrived in Saffron City and they had approached the Saffron gym. Misty and Brock stood there nervously remembering the horror they experienced the two times they entered the gym and into Sabrina's scary psychic world. "I guess we should go ahead and knock", said Seymour as he was the first to grab the doorknocker that was being held in the mouth by a statue of a strange ghost. Suddenly, it turned into a real ghost with a scary purple head and floating claws. It slurped Seymour's face and he fell down on the ground paralyzed and shaking.

"Seymour!" cried Jenny as she held onto him trying to snap him out of the trance the ghost put on him. Cameron took out his Pokedex and aimed it at the laughing ghost.

"HAUNTER, the gas Pokemon. The evolved form of Gastly", replied Dexeena, "Because of its ability to slip through block walls, it is said to be from another dimension. Its favorite attack is the lick attack. One slurp and the victim is paralyzed with fear."

"Hey, you're that same Haunter that Ash befriended and brought here to be Sabrina's friend, aren't you?" asked Brock.

"Haunt, Haunter!" said the Haunter ringing a bell with a tiny hammer telling Brock that he was correct.

"And I remember that dangerous tongue of yours too", said Misty remembering the time Haunter gave her the same slurping treatment. Haunter looked down at the shaking Seymour and let out a loud wail causing water to spray out of its eyes and knocking everyone down.

"Haunter, what's going on out there?!" said a voice. Out stepped a man with a beard and wearing a hat and jogging suit. Cameron recognized the man as Sabrina's father. "Haunter, did you affectionate another poor person again?!" he asked sternly. Haunter just sunk down into the floor in shame.

"Hello sir", said Brock, "Do you remember me and Misty?"

"Why yes I do", said S. father, "You're the ones, along with that boy Ash, who brought us that Haunter and reunited my wife and I with our no longer mean daughter. I was hoping I'd see all of you again. Say, where's Ash?"

Misty was about to tear up when Brock stood in front of her and said, "Uh, he couldn't be here with us right now. But we would like to speak to Sabrina please." "I can't believe I'm saying this", Brock thought nervously.

"Why sure", smiled S. father, "I'm sure my daughter will be on pins and needles to see you. And she just finished her voodoo class yesterday too. Heh, heh! Come on in everyone." He pushed open the door and everyone stepped inside while Brock and Jenny had to drag poor Seymour in. "Sorry about what Haunter did to your friend", said S. father, "But its sometimes hard to control. It just pops up anywhere and anytime it feels like it. Usually when I have Friday nights with the wife." And he made a small sour frown.

"Oh no problem", said Seymour who was now well enough to talk and stand up. He felt his face covered with lick. "Has anyone got a hot towel?" he asked. Suddenly a white towel started to float right in front of him like a ghost's sheet. Seymour started to faint while Jenny caught him. Haunter who was behind the towel realized that it frightened Seymour again started wailing again.

"Listen Haunter", said S. father, "This is not really a good time for you to be here. Why don't you go play in the attic for a while." Haunter just frowned and flew right through the ceiling going, "Haunt, haunt, haunt, haunt", which meant. "I'm always getting sent to the attic whenever we have company. Do people all over the world do that with their ghost Pokemon?"

* * * * * *

After they revived Seymour, S. father led them to a door. "This is where Sabrina does her psychic training", he said, "You never know what she'll be doing so be prepared to be either amazed or outraged."

"I hope she doesn't start turning us into dolls", said Misty.

"Oh don't worry", said . "She's totally outgrown dolls."

"Maybe she'll turn us into lipstick or make up instead", thought Stella.

"Oh Sabrina", said S. father as he gently knocked on her door and spoke through the crack. "Are you doing anything decent in there?"

"Oh yes I am Daddy", said Sabrina's voice, "Come right in." Everyone stepped inside and there was the lovely Sabrina. The same one Cameron saw in the TV series. At first she looked scary when she was evil and psychic-obsessed. But now she was smiling while waving at everyone. She was sitting at a table with a tiny rodent like Pokemon on it sleeping.

"Hello honey", said S. father, "And what are you doing today?"

"I'm testing to see if this Abra can detect when something's near even if its constantly sleeping. Watch." She took out a card that had the number 5 on it and put it near the sleeping Abra. Abra just tapped its tail on the table five times while snoring.

"Why that's amazing!" gasped Seymour and Bill together.

"If you think that's hot, how about this?!" Sabrina then took a closed MAD Magazine and put it right next to Abra. Abra started laughing in its sleep."

"Those are the types of laughs people make when they read Spy Vs. Spy", said Sabrina. "My theory works!" and she happily put Abra back into its Pokeball and approached the group. "Well, who do we have here?" she asked and then stared at Misty and Brock.

"Uh, oh!" they both thought together as Sabrina approached them with her arms out. She then gave them both a big friendly hug while both of them sighed of relief.

"Misty and Brock!" said Sabrina happily. "I thought I'd never see you both again after what I did to you all those years ago! Can you still forgive me for turning you into dolls like that?"

"Why sure", said Brock who was glad that this was the nice Sabrina they were talking to.

"It's all in the past", said Misty who thought it would be wise to forgive her just in case she'd get mad and work her psychic powers on them again.

"And who are all these new friends of yours?" asked Sabrina as she smiled and bowed to each new face she saw. But when she saw Cameron, she backed away frightened.

"Sabrina, what's the matter?" asked her father.

"That, that boy!" gasped Sabrina, "There's something not right about him!" Everyone looked at a puzzled Cameron who was wondering what he did that made her freaked.

"What did I do?" asked Cameron politely. Sabrina's eyes just glowed a dark color and Cameron suddenly found himself sealed in a glass box with only his head sticking out.

"What are you doing to Cameron?" demanded Misty.

"He's not from this world!" shouted Sabrina, "My psychic powers tell me that he's from another world. Probably one filled with darkness and evil!"

"You're right about one thing", said Brock, "Cameron is from another world, but I'm sure it's not an evil world."

"Yes", said Cameron, "I come from a place called Trenton."

"Trenton?" said Sabrina, "And what kind of monsters and demons does Trenton have?"

"None", said Cameron nervously, "It's just a normal city filled with people like us."

"Please Sabrina", pleaded her father, "You've been a good girl for such a long time. Please don't ruin it. Give Cameron a chance to show you what this Trenton place is like."

"Very well", said Sabrina as she approached Cameron and placed her hands on his face. Suddenly an image appeared in front of everyone. It was Cameron's home known as Trenton. There were buildings, houses, stores, malls, fast food places, and lots of ordinary people. It looked like a normal city to everyone only everything there wasn't animated.

"So that's where you live Cameron", said Misty, "It sure looks like a nice place."

"I hope I can return home there soon", said Cameron with a tear in his eye. Sabrina saw the tear drop on her hand and suddenly felt sorry for him. Her eyes started glowing and the glass box that held Cameron suddenly disappeared.

"Forgive me Cameron", said Sabrina, "I normally don't like acting so harsh these days. It was just your presence sort of spooked me. Can you please forgive me as well?"

"Sure, why not", said Cameron who was a little happy that Sabrina showed him his hometown again. Sabrina then smiled and gave him a quick kiss. "I know how I can make it up to you", she smiled, "Is there any place or anyone in Trenton I can show you?"

"Well", said Cameron, "I'd really like to see how my dad's doing right now. It's been weeks since I last saw him."

"You got it", winked Sabrina as she placed her hands on Cameron's cheeks again and created another image. There they saw a highway jam packed with cars. But in the middle it looked like a car wreck. Cameron gasped when he saw that one of the wrecked cars looked liked his dad's. He tried to see if anyone was hurt, but the police were surrounding the victims. Then he saw some medics roll away someone in a stretcher. Cameron turned white the minute he saw who it was. Then a medic approached a policeman and replied, "I'm sorry. But this man is dead."

Everyone stood there silent and shocked at the tragic image they just saw. Sabrina immediately removed her hands and the image disappeared. Cameron just stood there silently and emotionless and screamed, "DAAAAAD!!!" and then he fainted.

* * * * * *

Three days had passed and everyone was sitting in a den thinking about poor Cameron. Sabrina and her father had given him a bedroom so he could grieve in until he felt better.

"I can't believe this could happen to a nice guy", said Stella. "It's just like how I felt when I lost my Mr. Mime."

"At least there's still hope that you'll be reunited with him", said Bill, "But it's not so fortunate for Cameron."

"I'm really worried about him", said Jenny, "He hasn't spoken or eaten anything these past three days. And if we don't get him up and moving soon, Team Rocket could catch up with us and catch us."

"But we should let him grieve until he feels like he can stop", said Brock, "I remember when my mom died, I just let my siblings cry their hearts out until they could no more. After that, they were well enough to get on with their lives."

"It's really going to be hard on Cameron when it'll be time for him to return to his world", said Seymour, "He might not have anyone to return to."

"Maybe he has a family member or a loved one he can stay with", said Misty.

"Shrew!" said Sandy who was listening to the humans' conversation. He decided to go into the room and check up on his poor master. Sandy slowly creaked open the bedroom door and found Cameron lying stomach down on the bed with his face covered. He slowly jumped on the bed and found Cameron's glasses sitting on the table next to it. He heard Cameron sobbing quietly under his arms. "Shrew?" asked Sandy as he patted his master's arm. Cameron looked up and saw Sandy looking very concerned. Sandy saw that Cameron's eyes were all red and watery and he gave him a comforting slurp.

"Thank you Sandy", moaned Cameron as he sat up, picked up his first Pokemon and hugged him. "I'm sorry to be acting like a baby. But my dad was the only family I had in the world. I always feared that something would happen to him ever since my mom died and I'd be all alone. Well it looks like it finally happened! I just don't know what I'm gonna do now!" and he broke out into tears again while covering his face.

Sandy looked across the dresser and found Cameron's Pokeballs lying there. He leapt to the balls and released Vileplume, Zubat, Slowpoke, and Electabuzz. Sandy explained what happened to their master's dad and they all felt very sad too. Even Buzz who had the heart of an army tank couldn't help but shed tears for his new sergeant. Cameron was too busy crying to notice that Sandy had released his Pokemon. He then suddenly felt something on his lap. He saw Sandy hugging his stomach. Then Zubat perched herself on his left shoulder, Slowpoke hugged his mamma's left arm, Vileplume kept stumbling because of its new huge petals but managed to hug Cameron's right leg. And Buzz who was at first reluctant to show affection finally broke down and hugged Cameron's right side. "Thank you guys", sobbed Cameron who hugged all his Poke-friends who cried along with him.

Slowly the door opened and Misty stepped in holding a bowl of chocolate custard. She saw the touching scene of Cameron surrounded by loving Pokemon and smiled a little. "Hi Cameron", she said quietly. "How are you feeling?"

"It still hurts!" sobbed Cameron.

"I know it does", said Misty, "But still you should try to eat a little something. Brock made this just for you."

"No thanks", grieved Cameron, "Custard won't bring back my dad!"

"Neither is feeling sorry for yourself", said Misty, "Come on guys, maybe you'd like some of this custard since your master doesn't want any." And she secretly winked at all the Pokemon.

"Shrew!" smiled Sandy getting the idea. They all let go of Cameron and approached the bowl. Cameron watched as Misty spoon-fed each Pokemon one at a time. "That stuff must be really great", he thought.

"Slow", said Slowpoke as he approached his mamma and offered him a taste of his chocolate coated tail. Cameron smiled as he put his finger against the goop and tasted it. "Say, this stuff is good", he said now smiling, "Thanks Slowie", and he patted his Slowpoke's head while he smiled his dopey little smile.

"Is there any left for your master?" Cameron asked his Pokemon while smiling.

"But of course", smiled Misty as she handed the bowl to Cameron and gave him a clean spoon. Everyone in the room became happy to see Cameron eating again.

"Thank you Misty", said Cameron with a chocolate smile, "This is just what I needed today."

"You know Cameron", said Misty, "I know just what you're going through. Many years ago, both my parents died too. The only family I had was my sisters and they didn't really treat me like family much at all. I soon became so depressed, that I left home to start a Pokemon journey. If none of that ever happened, I wouldn't've met all the wonderful friends I have today, including you Cameron."

"You really feel that way?" asked Cameron. "Even Ash?"

"Especially Ash", smiled Misty who held back her tears. Everyone had stepped inside the room and Cameron saw the wonderful family Misty now had.

"How are you doing Cameron?" asked Seymour.

"I'm doing a little better" Said Cameron, "Thanks for the custard Brock. I was getting a little hungry."

"My pleasure", said Brock quietly.

"So do you have anyone you can call a family back home?" asked Jenny. "Any relatives or neighbors?"

"No", sighed Cameron, "My dad was my only family. And all the neighbors I had moved away a lot."

"Uh, oh", thought Bill, "It looks like this kid might be heading off to an orphanage!"

"Why don't you stay here with us instead of going back", said Stella, "We can be your family."

"Thank you", said Cameron, "But I don't feel that I belong here in this world. I'm not truly a flesh and blood member."

"I think it would be wise if you stay here", said Sabrina who just walked through the wall while everyone stood there in surprise.

"You think I should?" asked Cameron, "But what if I have a future or a great purpose that's waiting for me back in my world?"

"I've used my powers to check on your future in your world", said Sabrina, "And it's a pretty sad one. You get sent to an orphanage in New York with a lot of mean boys. You get a low rent apartment at 18, get a job as a UPS delivery boy, get married then divorced very quickly, have a son who grows up to be an assassin. Then you get a job as a store clerk, get shot and die at the age of 31."

Cameron turned white listening to the grim future that was waiting for him if he ever returned to his own world. "So I become a great loser", he moaned.

"Maybe", said Sabrina, "But maybe you can become something even greater here in the Pokemon world. I believe you were sent here because a great destiny awaits for you."

"And besides", said Misty, "If you do leave, you'd make five great Pokemon here sad masterless orphans." Cameron looked down at his Pokemon who were smiling at him and then got down on the floor and hugged them all.

"I'll have to think about it", said Cameron quietly. Everyone was about to leave the room until Cameron shouted. "I'M STAYING HERE!" All of Cameron's Pokemon cheered and tackled their master while licking, kissing, and tickling him to death. Everyone smiled seeing their friend happy again.

"Sabrina", asked Cameron, "Is it okay I challenge you for a MarshBadge?"

* * * * * *

An hour later, everyone was gathered inside the same gym that Ash battled for his MarshBadge. "Let's each us two Pokemon. No time limit", said Sabrina.

"Fine with me", said Cameron with determination in his eyes.

"I hope you're up to this", said Sabrina, "Because I'm not allowed to go easy on you. It's the league rules."

"I wonder if there are any rules about turning losers into dolls?" thought Misty.

"Give me your best!" said Cameron quietly. He wanted everything Sabrina could dish out. For he was going to win this match for his dad.

"Then I choose Jynx!" shouted Sabrina as she released a Pokemon that looked like a short human woman. She was wearing an orange dress, long blond hair, and had huge lips. She winked at Cameron and said, "Jynx!"

"A psychic type", thought Cameron, "I'll beat her with my own little psychic. Slowpoke, I choose you!" and Slowpoke appeared ready to fight for his mamma's honor.

"Jynx, lovely kiss attack", commanded Sabrina. Jynx puckered up her lips and sent a glowing heart right into Slowpoke's face. Slowpoke started to get very sleepy and was about to drift off.

"No Slowie!" called out Cameron, "It's not your naptime yet! Use your amnesia to forget that you're sleepy!" Little question marks started to surround Slowie and when they cleared, Slowie was now wide-awake and a lot stronger too. "All right Slowie", cheered Cameron, "Now give her your water gun!"

Slowie was about to take a deep breath until Sabrina called out, "Jynx, create a substitute." Jynx concentrated hard and suddenly a model of another Jynx appeared right in front of her. Slowie launched his water gun at the substitute leaving the original Jynx unharmed.

"Now how about giving it an ice punch?" commanded Sabrina.

"Jynx, jynx", commanded Jynx while the substitute balled up its fist, charged at Slowie and punched him hard. Luckily Slowie was too slow to feel any pain right away. But he did notice his body starting to freeze up in a block of ice. "Slow?" he called out to his mamma.

"Uh, quick Slowie", shouted Cameron, "Use your water gun to melt the ice!" Slowie responded and squirted water all over himself melting away the ice.

"How very clever", said Seymour. "But is your Slowpoke's psychic powers stronger than my Jynx's?" Jynx started to use her psychic powers to lift Slowie up into the air. But it didn't seem to bother him one bit. It felt kind of relaxing.

"Okay Slowie, give her your tri-attack!" commanded Cameron. A huge glowing triangle of energy suddenly sprouted out of Slowie's head. He set it loose smashing the substitute Jynx and hitting the orginial knocking her out cold.

"Very good Cameron", said Sabrina as she pulled Jynx back into her Pokeball. "But can you handle the ghostly tricks of Haunter?" Hearing his name, Haunter popped right out of the floor and started juggling some stuff around. Everyone gagged when they saw the stuff it was juggling was its stomach, intestines, heart, liver, and brain.

"No Haunter, it's not jester time yet", said Sabrina while shaking her head, "It's battle time." A blushing Haunter stuffed its organs back in its mouth, tied a karate bandana around its pointed head, and shouted, "HAUNTER!" which meant, "Senshi!" It then flew into the ring ready to battle Slowie.

"Slowie, give it another tri-attack!" commanded Cameron. "Slow!" he happily called out as he launched another triangle at Haunter. But both Slowie and Cameron became surprised when the triangle went right through Haunter leaving it happy and unharmed.

"Confuse ray now!" commanded Sabrina, Haunter then launched a dark flashing ray at Slowie causing him to become totally confused. In fact, he became so confused, he squirted water all over himself causing him to slip and knock himself out.

"Poor Slowie!" cried Cameron as he picked up his Slowpoke who was just sleeping off his pain. Haunter was just laughing while juggling little Vs for victory. "Let's see", thought Cameron, "Ground Pokemon seem to be effective against ghost Pokemon. Then I'll choose Sandy!" and he sent his Sandshrew into the ring.

"Shrew!" smiled Sandy happy that his master was back in the battling mood.

"Haunter, use your nightshade", commanded Sabrina. Haunter released a dark mist making everything in the room black. Cameron became worried. He knew that nightshade attacks could cause major damage to a Pokemon. When the darkness cleared, he found Sandy all curled up shaking nervously.

"You all right Sandy?" asked Cameron.

"Shrew!" said Sandy who uncurled and looked a little beaten, but still had some fight in him. Cameron looked angrily at the Haunter who was laughing so loudly that its mouth looked like a huge basketball hoop. Cameron then had an idea. "Sandy", said Cameron, "How about showing Mr. Haunter that new attack I taught you? Rock slide!"

"Sandshrew!" Sandy replied in a tough voice. He started spewing out sand, forming them into huge boulders, and started throwing them into Haunter's laughing mouth one by one. Haunter suddenly found himself full of a heavy diet of minerals and fell down onto the floor like a huge sack of potatoes.

"HAUNTER!" cried Sabrina who was watching the ghost trying to raise itself up but was too heavy to do so.

"The winner is Cameron and Sandshrew!" called out S. Father. Everyone cheered for Cameron's and Sandy's latest victory.

"All right!" shouted Cameron as he gave Sandy a high five.

"Shrew!" said Sandy proudly.

Sabrina slowly hovered over to Cameron while her father started giving Haunter some antacid. (A jumbo pack of antacid that is!) "Congratulations Cameron", she said, "You've earned the MarshBadge. Your father would be proud of you."

"Thank you", said Cameron quietly as he admired the round yellow badge he just won. "And I'm gonna keep making you proud Dad", he whispered.

* * * * * *

Later that evening, everyone was gathered at the dinner table eating a delicious meal Sabrina's mother had prepared. While Haunter was entertaining them by dressing up and acting like famous anime characters from Sailor Moon to a Pizza Cat.

"That sure was a great meal", Cameron said to Sabrina's mom.

"Thank you Cameron", she smiled, "It's great not having to cook anymore plastic Barbie food." Sabrina sat there quietly feeling ashamed about turning her mother into a doll five years ago.

"Sabrina", asked Bill, "Do you think you can possibly do me a favor?"

"Turn you back into a human?" smiled Sabrina.

"Why yes", said Bill, "You truly are psychic. Can you do that for me please?"

"I don't know", said Sabrina, "I've never tried turning a Pokemon into a human before. But I'll try." Sabrina concentrated hard and Bill found himself changing his Rattata shape.

"I think it's working!" said Bill excitedly. But instead of a human, Bill became a duck holding a leek.

"You've turned Bill into a Farfetch'd!" shouted Brock.

"Oh no!" cried Bill who looked at his webbed feet and wings, "And I don't even like the taste of leeks!"

"Don't panic", said Sabrina, "I'll try again" and she did. This time Bill became a huge thousand pound blue bear like Pokemon.

"Oh great", yawned Bill, "Now I'm a Snorlax! Wake me up when you get it right please", and he fell right asleep.

"They say the third times the charm", said Sabrina. Everyone became shocked when they saw what Bill had become this time.

"No, not a Meowth!" cried Bill who saw his reflection in a dinner plate. "And I hope I'm not a female one either!" he cried worrying that the original bad Meowth might develop a crush on him.

"Sorry", sighed Sabrina as she tried one last time, but turned Bill back into a Rattata. "Sorry Bill", she said sadly, "I'm just not experienced enough to change Pokemon into humans."

"That's okay", said Bill breathing very hard, "You tried your best. I guess I'll just have to wait till I get my DNA chamber back."

"Don't worry Bill", said Cameron, "We're not gonna give up until we complete our entire quest and get you humanized again!"

"Thank you Cameron", panted Bill.

"Sabrina", said Jenny, "There's one more favor we'd like to ask of you"

"Yes", said Sabrina, "I'll do anything to make up for all my bad deeds."

"Can you help us rescue a friend from a Pokemon called Mewtwo?" asked Jenny.

Sabrina started to turn white with fear. She shrunk herself down and hid into a sugar bowl. "Was it something I said?" asked Jenny.

"Please forgive her", said S. father who also had a scared look on his face. "It's just that only fool-hearted trainers dare to take on Mewtwo. We've seen many trainers try to take on that powerful beast only to be captured by that horrible mindjail attack of his never to be seen again."

"We thought a powerful psychic like you or Sabrina or a ghost Pokemon like Haunter would be able to take on Mewtwo", said Seymour.

"Are you kidding?!" gasped S. father. "Every psychic in the world knows and fears Mewtwo. His psychic powers could crush our tiny, insignificant, brains with just one thought. No offense daughter."

"None taken", whispered Sabrina from the sugar bowl.

"Not even Haunter can take on Mewtwo", continued S. father. "We've seen Mewtwo pull trainers along with their ghost Pokemon right inside his evil head."

"HAUNTER!" said Haunter nervously as it put a red rubber glove on its head and a beak on its nose and started making chicken noises.

"But we have to get to Mewtwo", cried Misty, "Ash is one of his prisoners and we just have to get our friend back!"

"Did you say Ash?!" shouted Sabrina as she flew out of the bowl and grew back to her normal size all covered with sweet sugar. "Why didn't you say that Ash was one of his victims? He helped me regain my sweet childhood innocence! I have to help him!"

"Does that mean you're coming with us?" asked Brock.

"No, I'm not that brave!" said Sabrina, "But I can at least tell you where Mewtwo is located. He's hiding out in an abandoned mansion on Cinnabar Island."

"Well I guess Cinnabar's our next destination then", said Jenny.

"This journey sure is leading us from one thing to another", said Stella. "First we were looking for Moonstones, then a cavalry, then Ash, then a Rocket boss, and now for a psycho Pokemon on a far away island. I hope this Mewtwo doesn't lead us to find something else."

"I also want to give you something that might be strong against Mewtwo",  
said Sabrina. "Cameron, can I see your Slowpoke please?"

"Okay", said Cameron as he released Slowie onto the table. Sabrina closed her eyes and pointed to Slowie's forehead. They both started to glow a funny color while Slowie was making a relaxing display of, "Slows."

"There, all done", said Sabrina as she let go of Slowie who just ran back into his mamma's arms.

"What did you do to Slowie?" asked Cameron.

"I just gave him a new psychic attack called mindzero", said Sabrina, "I've developed it over the years when I first heard about Mewtwo. I was going to use it in case that monster decides to bust in here and take on all us psychics. But now that you're all on your way to meet him, I'm sure it'll be in good hands with you and in a good head like Slowie", and she patted Slowie's head.

"Are you sure it'll work?" asked Cameron.

"No", said Sabrina, "It's very untested and I'm not sure how Slowie will use it, but my psychic instincts instructed me on how to make it."

"Let's hope it doesn't turn me into a Meowth again", said Bill.

* * * * * *

The next day, it was time for our heroes to leave for Cinnabar Island. Sabrina, her parents, and Haunter were all standing in front of the gym, waving goodbye to their friends who were pedaling off on their bikes.

"Cameron", asked Misty, "Are you sure you're feeling better about what happened to your father?"

"Well, it still hurts inside", said Cameron, "But I now realize that grieving forever won't bring him back. And I'll always remember him and love him. And I'm gonna work and become a great success at whatever this new world has in store for me. I'm gonna make Dad proud!"

"Shrew!" called out Sandy happily from Cameron's front basket.

"You're a very remarkable boy Cameron", said Jenny, "And as soon as we free Pallet Town, I'm officially going to make you an honorary citizen!"

"Thanks Jenny", said Cameron blushing, "And I'm gonna stick with my new family every step of the way. I just know together we can free Ash and be rid of Team Rocket forever!"

"That reminds me", said Brock, "We've spent four days in Sabrina's gym and Team Rocket didn't even bust in. Do you think they got lost or just gave up?"

* * * * * *

Sabrina's father knew that Team Rocket was on their way to Saffron City, so he put them all in a psychic sleep until Cameron was well enough to leave. Once S. father felt that Cameron and friends were far, far away from Saffron, he immediately released the Rockets from their sleep. Jessie, Reiko, and Meowth suddenly found themselves lying behind a big clump of bushes.

"What's the big idea catnapping on the job?" protested Meowth as he started to lick himself clean but got little thistles stuck on his tongue.

"MGLHRM!" mumbled Jessie realizing that a bird had built a nest in her mouth while she was snoring. She spit out the nest while the eggs went splat on the ground. "Someone's gonna pay for this!" Jessie screamed. Then a mother Spearow appeared. She saw her eggs smashed and started pecking on Jessie's head angrily. "OW!" cried Jessie, "All right, OW! I'll pay for those eggs! OW!"

While Jessie and Meowth were busy dealing with the gifts Mother Nature offered them, Reiko was quietly sitting on the ground thinking about the dream she just had. She was in a church dressed in a white bridal gown. She happily had her arm around a handsome groom who had a very familiar face. "Only in my dreams!" she sighed and started polishing her katana.

TO BE CONTINUED 


	15. The Dark Ones Cometh

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 15

The Dark Ones Cometh!

Our heroes had arrived in Lavender Town and were resting up at the Pokemon center on a row of connected sofas. Stella was busy brushing her new Persian while Bill was hiding under a seat cushion. "I wish she just left that beast at Celadon", he kept mumbling to himself. "Oh look, a rare Mew Pokemon card!" he said as he found a card under the cushion with him. "Maybe that Persian fellow is a Godsend after all."

Jenny took out a road map so big that it covered all our heroes. "I probably should've bought the compact one instead" she sighed.

"So what's the quickest route to Cinnabar Island?" asked Cameron.

"I'd be lying if I said it was the quickest", said Jenny, "Now that we only have bikes, we have to go south out of Lavender Town, keep going south for many days until we get to Fuchsia City. Then a few more days until we reach the ocean. Then we have to somehow get a boat and sail many days until we get to Seafoam Island to stock up on supplies. Then after were so tired, exhausted, and time zoned out, we arrive at Cinnabar where our pyscho-island host Mewtwo might be expecting us."

"I can just count the minutes until we meet him", said Stella, "All six million of them!"

"Let's concentrate on getting out of this map first", said Brock while he and all the others were trying to get out of the tangled web of paper.

"It'll probably take months to get out of this mess of paper cuts!" whined Misty.

When they finally got themselves free from the map, Seymour then looked up and saw an old lady with a wooden cane walk into the center. "It's her!" he gasped.

"Do you know her?" asked Jenny hoping he didn't have a thing for older women.

"Every Pokemon lover knows her!" said Seymour excitedly, "That's Agatha! A member of the Elite Four!"

"I've heard of the Elite Four", said Stella, "They're the four most powerful Pokemon masters in the world."

"That's right", said Brock, "I've based my gym off of Bruno since he's the master of rock and fighting Pokemon."

"I always loved Lorelei", said Misty with stars in her eyes. "She knows how to handle water and ice Pokemon."

"My favorite is Lance", said Bill, "Rumor has it he actually has real live dragon Pokemon with him."

"I've always liked Agatha the best", said Seymour. "No one can master ghost and poison Pokemon like her and I heard she once dated the famous Prof. Oak. Oh, how I'd like to see her live one day."

"Uh, Seymour", said Cameron, "Agatha is in the same center we're in right now."

"Oh yeah", said Seymour while his glasses turned red with embarrassment.

"Why don't you go over and introduce yourself to her?" asked Jenny.

"Are you kidding?" gasped Seymour, "She's all powerful and too important for a lowly scientist like me to even speak to."

"She'll have to listen to the law like me", smiled Jenny, "Come on. I'll introduce you to her." And she grabbed Seymour's arm and dragged him over to where Agatha was while he was sweating like crazy.

"I don't think Agatha will be impressed with the puddle of sweat he'll be standing in", said Stella.

"I'd probably do the same thing if I met Bruno", said Brock.

"And I'd do the same if and when I actually find Ash", thought Cameron thinking about his hero.

* * * * * *

"Here you go Miss Agatha", said Nurse Joy as she handed Agatha a Pokeball. "She's all nicely healed just for you."

"Thank you dear", said Agatha as she put the Pokeball back in her apron. When she turned around, she found a policewoman and a nervous guy in a labcoat in front of her. "What's wrong officer?" asked Agatha, "Is my Gastly covering up stop lights again?"

"Oh no", smiled Jenny, "It's just that Seymour here is a big fan of yours and he would so much love to meet you. Isn't that right Seymour?" asked Jenny while she put her arm around the shaking scientist.

"Does he talk or is his native language mime?" asked Agatha puzzled.

"Seymour, say something!" whispered Jenny.

"I, I don't know what to say to her", whispered Seymour nervously.

"Recite one of your poems", said Jenny, "That's how you impressed me", and she winked at him. Seymour, who suddenly developed a new found courage thanks to this wonderful woman in blue, approached Agatha and suddenly burst out a poem.

"There are a group of Elite trainers and they all equal four.  
There'll never be another group like them, never more.  
One deals with dragons and one trains ice.  
And one handles muscle Pokemon extremely nice.  
But the one called Agatha makes me feel proud and tall.  
Though she deals with darkness, she still outshines them all."

Agatha stood there awestruck with her mouth wide open. "Uh, oh", thought Seymour, "I blew it big time!" But then Agatha's wide-open mouth became a sweet smile and she clapped her wrinkled hands.

"Bravisimo!" smiled Agatha, "That poem of yours really touched my heart. Actually it touched my pacemaker. But I still think it's great. Have you written it a long time ago?"

"Uh, actually no", said Seymour blushing, "I just thought it up right now!"

"Well, you did an exquisite job my boy", smiled Agatha, "Usually people don't like me cause I deal with ghosts and poison. It's an honor to have someone write a poem dedicated to me. Would you and your group over there like to come to my place for dinner?"

"M...me, have dinner with you?!" stuttered Seymour.

"But of course", smiled Agatha, "I insist that you, your friends, and your charming policegirlfriend here spend the evening with me."

"What do you say scienceboyfriend?" winked Jenny.

"We'd be honored!", shouted Seymour as he started doing double-back flips all over the center while everyone looked at him funny.

"I never knew I had that kind of affect on a person before", said Agatha.

"You should see how he acts when he's alone with me!" winked Jenny.

* * * * * *

Our heroes had followed Agatha to where she lived. Seymour was totally too excited to even speak knowing that he was a guest of the famous Agatha. But he managed to whisper to Jenny. "Thank's Jen!"  
While Jenny replied, "Anything for you my sci-guy!"

They had left the town and came to the front of Agatha's home. It was a huge tower that was very familiar to Cameron, Misty, and Brock. "That's, THAT'S!!!" shivered Misty.

"That's the tower we visited the last time we were in Lavender Town!" gasped Brock, "The one that was haunted by ghost Pokemon!"

"Oh, so you're familiar with this place?" said Agatha, "I must've been away on a tour when you all came here. My Gastly and Gengar told me about a group of youngsters who came to visit and how Haunter wanted to come with them. I hear Hauntie's living with Sabrina now and has made that poor lonely girl happy again. So I let that crazy nut stay with her."

Misty and Brock shivered at the thought of someone living in a place that's filled with ghosts.

"Well why are we standing around here for?" asked Agatha. "Come on inside everyone before my ghosts clean out my refrigerator!" and they all stepped inside while Agatha locked the door and lit a candle.

"Wouldn't it be easier if you had a light switch near your door?" asked Cameron.

"And take away this lovely spooky atmosphere?" laughed Agatha, "Don't make me laugh!"

Everyone followed Agatha up a path of twisty stairs while everyone looked nervously at their shadows. Misty who was at the end of the trail looked at her shadow that looked really fat and wide.

"Oh no!" she cried, "I'm a total blimp! How could this have happened?! WAAAAAH!" Just then her shadow started laughing out loud. "What's going on here?!" Misty cried nervously. The fat shadow suddenly sprouted out eyes and a toothy grin. It hugged Misty and started kissing her. "SOMEBODY DO SOMETHING!!" she screamed.

"Gengar, that's enough of that!" scolded Agatha. The shadow humbly let go of the shakened Misty, dusted her off with a whiskbroom, and let out an apologetic, "GAR" Cameron took out his Pokedex and aimed it at the shadow.

"GENGAR, the shadow Pokemon. The evolved form of Haunter", replied Dexeena. "Under a full moon, this Pokemon likes to mimic the shadows of people and laugh at their fright."

"No Gengar will laugh at anyone's fright when old Agatha's around!" said Agatha sternly. Gengar just bowed its head down in shame. "Please forgive me as well Misty", said Agatha in a now polite voice. "It's just that these ghost Pokemon can sometimes be so unpredictable."

"Oh, no problem", said Misty who was now feeling better. But then she became frightened again as she screamed when she looked down and saw Bill with a new head on his Rattata body. It was a huge black circle with huge eyes and fangs with vapor all around it.

"Hey, who turned out the lights?!" cried Bill as he ran around and hit the wall while the new head went right through it. Everyone looked at the dazed Bill who had his Rattata head back.

"Gastly, you get out here right now and apologize to this poor creature this instant!" scolded Agatha from the wall. "GASTLY!" sighed the huge black head as it materialized through the wall, helped Bill up and offered him some crackers and Brie.

"Uh, thank you good sir", replied Bill as he nervously took a cracker from the tray that Gastly seemed to be levitating for it had no hands. Cameron aimed his Pokedex at Gastly.

"GASTLY, the gas Pokemon", replied Dexeena, "Almost invisible, this gaseous Pokemon cloaks the target and puts it to sleep without notice." And sure enough they saw Bill sleeping peacefully after being exposed to Gastly's gas.

"Those guys sure know how to liven up this place", said Stella, "Even if they are dead." Gastly and Gengar started laughing while Gengar started to dribble Gastly around like a rubber ball.

"Shouldn't one of you be guarding the important you-know-what?" Agatha asked them. Gastly and Gengar suddenly stopped playing around and floated right through the ceiling. "Ghosts will be ghosts", sighed Agatha.

* * * * * *

Outside of the tower, Team Rocket were hiding behind a bush trying to figure some way to get in and capture our heroes. "Why are we just sitting around out here in the wind that is as cold as the blood of an Articuno?" asked Reiko impatiently, "Are we not going to go in?" She looked at Jessie and Meowth and they were holding each other shaking in fear. "I don't think it's really that cold", said Reiko, "Are my metaphors that powerful?"

"It's not that!" stuttered Jessie, "It's just that tower brings back haunting memories!"

"And haunted is the word for that joint!" cowered Meowth. "The last time we came here. Ghosts came and grabbed us and forced us to be their little playthings. I can still taste the tuna I threw up when we were forced to ride that spinning merry-go-round of theirs!"

"My", thought Reiko secretly worried that those ghosts would do the same thing to Cameron. " But we must go in there." "For Cameron's sake", she thought to herself. "I know, since ghost Pokemon are poison types, maybe Kadabra can take them on."

"Reiko! You're brilliant!" shouted Jessie as she hugged her, "I can always count on you when the chips are down! And it's a good thing I called up James the other day and had him transport this thing to me."  
And she took out a Pokeball marked Kadabra on it.

* * * * * *

Our heroes just had a wonderful dinner prepared by Agatha and they were now talking about the quest they were on. "Oh dear", said Agatha, "The thought of poor Prof. Oak being trapped in that town for five years makes me sorry we ever broke up."

"But don't worry", said Brock, "As soon as we find our friend Ash and get ourselves a cavalry, we're gonna free the Professor and the entire town of Pallet."

"I wish I could let one of my ghosts join you on your quest", said Agatha, "But I'm afraid I need them both here for personal reasons."

"We wouldn't even think of asking you to give up one of your Pokemon", said Seymour, "I know how much you treasure the ones you own."

"Thank you Seymour", smiled Agatha, "And I got a darn fine collection too. I got my Gastly and Gengar along with my Arbok, Golbat, and Vileplume."

"Vileplume?" thought Cameron.

"What was in the ball that Nurse Joy gave you?" asked Misty.

"Oh, I almost forgot", said Agatha, "I'd better check and see how my little one is doing!" and she took out her Pokeball and released a squirrel like Pokemon with huge pointy ears that replied, "EEVEE!" Cameron took out his Pokedex again.

"EEVEE, the evolution Pokemon", replied Dexeena, "Its genetic code is irregular. It may mutate if it's exposed to radiation from elemental stones or from other powerful sources."

"Oh, it's so cute!" said Misty as she picked up Eevee while it licked her face.

"But Eevee is a normal type", said Seymour, "I thought you only owned ghost and poison types. If you don't mind me asking that is?"

"Oh, I don't mind at all", smiled Agatha as she scratched Eevee's head. "I found this Eevee injured by the side of a road today. So I took it to the Pokemon center to get it all healed, then went shopping for a while and came back for it. That's when I met all of you."

"Wow!" gasped Seymour, "Because of this Eevee I was able to meet my hero. I mean heroine."

"Miss. Agatha", said Cameron, "You said you owned a Vileplume right?"

"That's correct young man", said Agatha.

"Well, does your Vileplume ever tip over because of its huge petals?" asked Cameron.

"Why, do you own one too?", she asked while smiling.

"Sure do", said Cameron as he took out a Pokeball, "Come on out V. P." he said as he released his Vileplume who waved hi to everyone then toppled over until it was standing on its head.

"Ah, there's nothing more precious than the rise and falling of a fresh new Vileplume", smiled Agatha as she inhaled V. P.'s scent. "Don't worry Cameron. I know a way that'll get V. P. here back on its feet, er roots!"

* * * * * *

Agatha had brought out a huge beach ball and she told Cameron to make his Vileplume get on it. Cameron watched with frustration as Vileplume kept falling off the ball. "Just being on solid ground is tough enough for V. P." whined Cameron.

"Trust me", said Agatha, "Don't make it stop balancing itself." So Cameron sighed and put V. P. back on the ball, let go, and V. P. fell off again.

"That's just like how my father taught me how to walk", said Stella.

"Your dad made you balance yourself on a ball when you were a baby?" asked Brock.

"What do you expect?" smiled Stella "I got circus blood in me. I bleed cotton candy."

Pretty soon, V. P. had completely balanced itself on the ball like a professional. "All right Cameron", said Agatha, "Now tell V. P. to get off the ball and onto solid floor." Cameron did and sure enough, V. P. was standing perfectly straight on the floor.

"VILE!" it cried happily as it started dancing around without even stumbling once.

"It worked!" smiled Cameron as he hugged V. P. "You can walk properly again! Thank you Miss. Agatha!"

"My pleasure son", smiled Agatha. "Once a Vileplume masters the ball, standing on horizontal ground should be a cinch for it."

"It looks like someone else has caught the balancing craze as well", said Brock as he pointed to Psyduck who was also trying to balance himself on a ball but kept falling on his bill instead.

"PSY-YAI-YAI!" moaned Psyduck as he clutched the ball thinking it was his head.

"You don't even know how to have a headache properly!" sighed Misty.

"NOOO!" shouted Agatha as she snatched the huge ball away from Psyduck. "You keep your webbed hands off of this thing!" she shouted as she hugged the ball tightly. Cameron took a closer look at the ball. It was a Pokeball, except it was the size of a bowling ball and it was black with crossbones and a skull on it.

"Let me guess", said Stella, "That's the important you-know-what you were talking about."

"I was wrong when I said this was important", said Agatha nervously, "This is life crucial! This is the legendary Pandora Ball!"

"The Pandora Ball?!!" gasped Seymour and Bill together while shaking.

"What's a Pandora Ball?" asked Jenny.

"Every Pokemon researcher and lover knows about the Pandora Ball!" said Bill, "It strikes fear into all our hearts!"

"It contains a new species of Pokemon that should never be released into this world", said Seymour, "The dark Pokemon!" and a sting of sinister music started to play, mainly because Gengar was practicing the pipe organ across the room.

"Gengar, you're supposed to be guarding this ball!" shouted an angry Agatha. "Take this back to the room and don't keep your eyes off of it! You're just lucky that it was a simple Psyduck who doesn't know how to open it!"

"Even an Elite Four member thinks my Psyduck's a pain", sighed Misty.

"GENGAR!", sobbed Gengar as it took the ball from Agatha and went through the wall dropping the ball since it wasn't transparent like Gengar. It went through the doorway, picked up the ball, and left the room in a hurry.

"I knew I should've had that pipe organ dismantled!" said Agatha.

"Don't you think you were a little hard on Gengar?" asked Cameron.

"I had to be!" said Agatha, "Dark Pokemon are not something to take lightly!"

"What exactly is a dark Pokemon?" asked Misty.

"Gather around everyone and I'll tell you a scary tale", said Agatha as she got down on the floor while everyone joined her. "Many moons ago a young wizard wasn't satisfied with all magical Pokemon like Abras, Kadabras, and Alakazams he owned. He wanted to own and train a new race of Pokemon. Pokemon that would be strong against any type. One day he thumbed through his spellbook and discovered about the legend of the dark Pokemon. He eagerly wanted to bring them into this world and master them so he mixed potions, recited spells, and did a bunch of embarrassing dances until he finally did it! A portal from the underworld opened and the dark ones were released. But they were too powerful and evil for the wizard to control and they destroyed him and spread their wrath on every town and village. Luckily another wizard who was even more powerful than the last one managed to capture every last one of them and locked them all up inside the famous Pandora Ball. But unfortunately the wizard passed away shortly leaving his Pandora Ball unprotected. Ever since that day, my ancestors have been guarding it making sure those dark ones stay sealed forever."

"Wow!" said Seymour, "That's a pretty big responsibility for an important Pokemon master like yourself to carry."

"Hey, it beats playing bingo in a hot and stuffy parlor", smiled Agatha. "I just don't know what would happen to this world if the dark ones had been released."

"At least it'd be a good excuse to whack Psyduck for all eternity if that did happen", said Misty.

* * * * * *

In a room upstairs the tower, Team Rocket had teleported in thanks to their Kadabra. Jessie was wearing a pair of garlic earrings while Meowth was wearing a garlic bowtie. "I believe garlic only works against vampires", said Reiko.

"What vampires?" asked Meowth.

"We're just coming up with a new style of jewelry", said Jessie and then sniffed the strong garlic. "Maybe garlic is a bad idea", she said. Reiko looked at them funny while her mask hid her expressions.

"Hey, will you look at that?" said Meowth as he pointed to the huge black Pokeball.

"A Pokeball that size must contain the worlds' largest and most powerful Pokemon", said Jessie, "And as queen of Rocketville. It is my duty to claim it and open it!" But just as Jessie was about to approach it, a huge shadow covered up the ball.

"Meowth, move your furry behind!" shouted Jessie, "Your shadow's blocking my sight!"

"But my shadow's over here", said Meowth pointing to his cat-shaped shadow that was on the other side of the room.

"As well as mine", said Reiko pointing to her sexy shadow which made Meowth's shadow whistle at her while she kicked it off into the shadowy darkness. The real Meowth and Reiko looked puzzled for they did not do what those shadows just did.

"Well then whose shadow is this?" asked Jessie. The shadow replied by hugging her while giving her a big kiss.

"Yeeech! A Gengar!" shouted Jessie as she backed up to her teammates. "Now I'm gonna be exposed to its decay!" Gengar started to cry tears at the hurtful words Jessie just said. Then Gastly floated into the room and said something to Gengar that immediately cheered it up. Then both ghosts approached the trio while holding feathers.

"Uh, oh", cried Meowth, "The worst kind of attack of all! Tickle attacks!"

"An attack so horrific that the Pokemon League banned it!" said Reiko.

"Kadabra, use your psybeam on them before they make us happy!" shouted Jessie. Kadabra fired a psychic beam from his forehead at the two ghosts, but they just went right through the ceiling and floor causing the beam to hit a portrait of Prof. Oak.

"Did we get rid of them?" asked Meowth nervously. But then Gastly reappeared from the ceiling and Gengar came through the floor and started working their tickle magic on Jessie and Meowth.

"HA HA HA HA!" screamed Jessie, "These ghosts are making me waste my sinister laughs! HA HA HA!"

"HA HA HA HA!" laughed Meowth while Gastly tickled him. "Can't you just put us back on that merry-go-round?! HA HA HA!"

"Kingler, blizzard attack!" shouted Reiko's voice. Gastly and Gengar stopped their tickling and slowly turned around. Reiko's Kingler blasted a huge blizzard at the two ghosts freezing them into blocks of ice.

"Those ghosts are now toast!" laughed Meowth.

"I would definitely not call them toast", said Reiko.

"The only toast I want is to make a toast when we catch those rebels and find out what's in that ball!" said Jessie as they all approached the unprotected Pandora Ball. Eevee, who happened to pass by the doorway of that room, saw the two human girls and Meowth trying to pry open her master's ball while her ghostly friends were frozen stiff. Eevee immediately ran down the stairs to get our heroes.

"Okay Kingler", said Reiko, "Time to be like the Nutcracker Prince that knows how to punish stubborn nuts! Use your vicegrip to pry open this ball."

"King!" said Kingler as it clamped onto the ball with both claws and tried to pry it open.

"Hold it right there!" called out an old lady's voice. They turned around and saw Eevee who had brought along Agatha and our heroes. Agatha looked down on the ground and found her portrait of Prof. Oak with his head completely burned off. "How dare you burst into my home, hurt my poor ghosts, ruin my favorite picture, and try to open the most dangerous ball in the world!" she shouted.

"Uh, it's a living", said Meowth.

"Well you'll all be making your living stamping out license plates!" said Jenny as she took out her handcuffs.

"Well isn't this a delight!" smiled Jessie, "The rebels have decided to come right into our clutches. Kadabra, disable all of them!"

"KADABRA!" shouted Kadabra as its eyes glowed and Jenny along with our heroes suddenly found themselves paralyzed.

"Excellent", smiled Jessie, "Now to see what's inside this ball that's got all of you so worried!"

"You can't open that!" cried Seymour, "You'll release a great force or darkness and evil in the world if you do!"

"It can't be more eviler than me", said Jessie proudly, "I'll just overpower it like I did with James and this Meowth over here."

"Who says you overpowered me?!" shouted Meowth as he was about to scratch Jessie's face for the umpeenth time, but was stopped by Reiko's boot.

"She does", smiled Jessie as she looked down at Meowth who had a big dirty footprint on his face. Cameron wondered when Reiko would show her sweet side once again. He was hoping right now so she'd let them escape.

Just then, Kingler managed to crack open the Pandora Ball a little. "Excellent!" smiled Jessie evily, "Now to claim my treasure!" and she ran up to the ball and started to open it up very slowly.

"Oh no!" cried Agatha, "She's actually done it!" Just then, a huge black explosion burst out of the ball, knocking Jessie back into Meowth, Reiko, Kingler, and Kadabra and our heroes down on the floor freeing them from the disable attack, while Gastly and Gengar were shattered free from their icy prisons. When the blackness cleared, there they were. About 100 dark Pokemon had filled the room. They consisted of mean looking crows, red fiery dogs, and little gremlin like creatures. They were all looking mean eyed at Team Rocket.

"What have we unleashed?!" gasped Jessie while shaking.

"Congratulations, you just won the Nobel Prize", said Agatha, "The first prize in stupidity!"

"I don't like the looks of those Pokemon", said Cameron.

"And they don't like the looks of us either", said Agatha. "Hurry, we have to apprehend each one of them before they leave this tower! Gastly, Gengar, hypnotize them all to sleep!" Gastly and Gengar leapt in front of the dark ones and tried to use their hypnosis attacks, but it didn't effect the dark ones at all. The dogs then breathed fire at the two ghosts causing them to faint.

"Oh no!" cried Agatha, "I forgot. Dark Pokemon are immune to psychic attacks!" Then she took out two Pokeballs and pulled the two ghosts back in them. "I'm getting you two to the Pokemon center when all of this is over!"

"There ain't nothing more worse than a dog except a fire-breathing dog!" cried Meowth, "Lemme out of here!" and he started running full speed to the door. Just then, one of the crows disappeared then reappeared right in front of the shocked Meowth. It gave him a dark glare turning the poor cat black as coal and paralyzing him.

All of the dark ones started approaching everyone in the room ready to remove them from their sights. "Kadabra, psychic attack!" shouted Jessie, "Kingler, blizzard attack!" shouted Reiko. But those attacks were completely useless for the dark ones were completely immune to the pyschic attack and the dogs just melted the blizzard away with their flamethrowers. Then they all backed all our heroes and villains into a corner of the wall.

"Clefairy, Clefable, use your light screen to protect us!" shouted Seymour as he released the two cute little Pokemon. They raised their fingers and a flashing wall of light appeared protecting everyone while the dark ones ran away scared out the window.

"Thank you my friends", said Seymour as he hugged his two fairy Pokemon who both made a happy "Clef!"

Reiko then approached Meowth who was still black and lying on the floor and picked him up. "Meowth-san, are you all right?" asked Reiko. Meowth didn't say a word. It was like he was a lifeless lump of coal that was carved into a Meowth.

"It's the effect of the dark ones' black gaze", said Agatha as she sadly patted poor Meowth's head. But don't worry. A trip to the Pokemon center should have him up and causing trouble again. Right now, we have a bigger problem."

"We do?" asked Stella knowing what it was.

"We have to catch every single one of those dark Pokemon and put them back into that ball before Lavender Town and the whole world will be doomed!"

"What type of Pokemon are strong against dark Pokemon?" asked Brock.

"That is a big mystery", said Agatha, "We'll just have to try out all types and hope and pray one of our Pokemon will be able to do the job."

"Then let's get going", said Bill hoping his normal type attacks would handle the big scary dark ones.

"Let me come with you too", said Reiko.

"I think you've helped enough", said Jenny angrily.

"And why would you want to help us?" asked Misty, "You're on the enemy's side."

"It is true that I see you all as enemies", said Reiko, "But in my heart I never want to release any kind of evil into this world. This is mainly all my fault and I've already dishonored my true family too many times. But this goes far beyond any dishonorment. So please let me assist you. You have my ninja's honor."

Cameron could tell that Reiko was telling the truth by the look in her pretty eyes and she was really sorry about all this and for joining Team Rocket in the first place. "What do you say everyone?" asked Cameron, "We could use all the help we can get in saving the world."

Everyone gathered around in a huddle to discuss this, but Agatha completely broke it up. "If we stick around squabbling like this, we'll never catch them!" she shouted. "All right, little Miss. Ninja, I accept your help."

"Arigato", said Reiko as she bowed to Agatha, "I guarantee you will not regret this."

"What about Jessie?" asked Misty who pointed over to Jessie who was curled up in a corner shaking in fear.

"I suppose this was all too much for my fragile queen", said Reiko who let Jessie hold onto the motionless Meowth like a security blanket. Reiko then released her Tentacruel right next to Kadabra.

"Tentacruel and Kadabra", said Reiko, "I need you two to stay here and protect Queen Jessie and Meowth until we get back. Can you both handle the job?"

"Cruel!" said Tentacruel.

"Kadabra!" said Kadabra.

Reiko then followed our heroes out of the room while Tentacruel put its protective tendrils around Jessie who suddenly screamed.

* * * * * *

The first thing our heroes came across was a cornfield and there were the dark crows munching on every ear of corn while ripping off the scarecrow's limbs thinking it was a real human. Cameron aimed his Pokedex at the crows.

"MURKROW, the dark bird Pokemon", replied Dexeena, "No other data is given."

"If those Murkrows are bird types", said Brock, "Maybe an electric type will defeat them."

"Leave that to me and my Electabuzz", said Cameron as he released Buzz onto the ground who saluted Cameron and shouted, "BUZZ, EL, BUZZ!"

"At ease", said Cameron. "I need you to thunderbolt all those Murkrows so we can capture them."

"And be sure not to look any of them in the eyes", said Agatha.

"BUZZ, EL, BUZZ!" shouted Buzz who tried to shoot thunderbolts at the birds with his eyes closed. He was able to hit a few while the others easily dodged them. Then the Murkrows shot some dark energy at Buzz and he saw something frightening to him. A horde of giant unclean toilets started marching up to him each holding a scrubbing brush. "Lt. Surge says you were a bad soldier", said one of the toilets, "So it's clean up time for you for the next 1,000 years!"

"BUUUUUUZZZZ!" shouted Buzz who ran up to Cameron hugging him in fear.

"Buzz, what's the matter?" asked Cameron, "You were doing a great job so far."

"I'm afraid that looked like a nightmare attack", said Agatha, "Hardly any Pokemon is a match for that attack."

Buzz was holding onto Cameron fearing that his new sergeant would think that he's a wimp. Just then, Cameron had slipped out of Buzz's hug. He opened his eyes, looked up, and saw Cameron being carried away by the remaining Murkrows.

"CAMERON-SAN!!" cried Reiko as she and the others watched in fear as the Murkrows were about to tear Cameron's limbs off.

"AAAUGGGGH!!!" screamed Cameron in pain. Buzz, who suddenly developed a sparkling rage in his eyes at what those birds were doing to his sergeant, released a powerful thunderbolt shocking all the Murkrows unconscious while shocking Cameron as well. The Murkrows dropped Cameron while Reiko leapt up into the air and caught him. "Are you all right Cameron-san?" asked Reiko as everyone gathered around them.

"Reiko?" asked Cameron who found himself in the arms of a beautiful black-haired angel. "Am I in heaven?"

"No", smiled Reiko, "But your Electabuzz saved you from where those birds might've sent you." Cameron looked over at Buzz who was saluting strong and tall while tears ran down his fuzzy face.

"Thank you soldier", said Cameron.

Everyone looked at all the singed Murkrows on the ground. "They should use electric type Pokemon to guard cornfields instead of obviously lifeless scarecrows", said Stella.

Agatha just opened up the Pandora Ball and sucked every Murkrow back inside. She then looked at a little counter she had installed on the ball. "30 down, 70 to go", said Agatha. Just then, they heard some loud, "MOOOOOOOOOs!"

"I believe we might've found some more", said Brock as he was looking through his binoculars at a nearby cattle farm. Everyone rushed over to the farm and they saw a whole herd of Tauros being threatened by all those red dogs. They were spitting out embers ready to enjoy a nice helping of sirloin steaks.

"What are those things?" asked Cameron as he took out Dexeena once again.

"HOUNDOUR, the devil dog Pokemon", said Dexeena, "No other data given other than being a fire type."

"We have to stop them before those dogs get even redder from all that red meat!" said Jenny, "Growlithe, flamethrower now!"

"GROWWWL!" howled Growlithe as he breathed fire at all those fellow dogs while our heroes opened the gate letting all the Tauros stampede free. But the Houndours' flamethrowers were even stronger than Growlithe's and he ran back into Jenny's arms making an apologetic growl."

"It's not your fault Growlithe", said Jenny, "The police training manual didn't mention anything on how to handle dark Pokemon."

"Since those Houndours are also fire types, maybe water will defeat them", said Agatha.

"Yes, that's it!" smiled Misty. "Everyone release your water Pokemon!" Cameron released Slowpoke, Reiko released Kingler, Seymour released Wartortle, and Misty sent out her Seaking, Staryu, Starmie, and Seadra. Even Psyduck came out, even though Misty didn't call him out.

"Everyone use your water gun, bubble, bubblebeam, surf, and hydro pump attacks at the same time!" commanded Misty. Just as the Houndours were about to set fire to our heroes, all the water Pokemon blasted large amounts of H20 at the dogs soaking them completely. Only Psyduck was trying to squirt at Jenny's Growlithe thinking it was one of the dark dogs. "You dumb duck!" groaned Misty, "That's Jenny's Growlithe! You could get 10 to 20 for assaulting a police dog!" Misty pulled Psyduck back into his ball while Growlithe jumped into Jenny's arms.

Once all the Pokemon were out of water, the smoke cleared and all the Houndours were lying in a huge pile without their bright red colors. "If there's one thing I hate, it's cold hot dogs", said Cameron.

"Well it's time to put these little wiener dogs back into storage!" said Agatha as she opened the ball and sucked all the Houndours back in with the Murkrows.

"Now what's next?" asked Stella. Then they heard some human screams coming from a final direction.

"Oh no, not the town!" cried Agatha, "Let's go everyone!" and they all followed the speedy Agatha right into Lavender Town.

* * * * * *

When they got to the town, they found all the citizens being terrorized by all those gremlin looking Pokemon. They were stealing candy from stores, shredding up magazines from newsstands, licking stop signs like they were lollipops, and they were fury swiping any human that got in their way.

"I don't like the looks of whatever those things are", said Cameron as he took out Deexena once again. "SNEASEL, the dark Pokemon", replied Dexeena, "And guess what? No other data is given either! Boy, you sure are finding many interesting discoveries kiddo!" Cameron looked puzzled at Dexeena then put it back in his pocket.

"What kind of Pokemon you suppose would stop these guys?" asked Brock.

"I have no idea!" said Agatha.

"Maybe if we use a smokescreen attack, the Sneasels won't be able to see and they'll be easier to attack and capture", said Misty.

"That could work", said Seymour, "But what Pokemon can we use?"

"We'll use Seadra!" smiled Misty as she was about to release her sea horse, but instead Psyduck popped out in front of the danger as usual.

"Oh no!" cried Misty, "Why did you have to pick this time to be stupid?! I'm gonna miss you buddy!"

The Sneasels approached the poor duck ready to slash him to confetti. Psyduck became so frightened that he became confused and started unleashing his pay day attack all over the street. "At least he'll die a rich duck", sighed Misty.

Suddenly all the Sneasels looked green-eyed at all those coins and started scattering around picking every one of them up. "But of course", said Agatha, "Greed are those Sneasels' main weakness. Cameron, let's use our Vileplumes on them while they're distracted!"

"Gotcha!" smiled Cameron as he and Agatha released their Vileplumes who put all the Sneasels to sleep with their sleep powder. Psyduck fell asleep too since he was in the middle of their coin gathering. Then Misty came and took Psyduck out of the way while Agatha sucked all the Sneasels back into the Pandora Ball.

"Aw, Psyduck", smiled Misty, "You never cease to amaze me", and she gave Psyduck a kiss on the forehead while he slept happily. "Psy!" he snored.

"Did we get all of them?" Seymour asked Agatha.

"No, not all of them", said Agatha, "As I remember, there was one dark Pokemon that was supposed to be the strongest of them all." Suddenly, they heard a loud howl. Everyone turned around and looked in fear. It was a Houndour, except it was huge and it had horns and a devil's tail.

"Well I guess we don't have to worry about finding it", said Agatha nervously. Cameron aimed Dexeena at the dog hoping it wouldn't be the last time.

"HOUNDOOM, the evolved form of Houndour", said Dexeena, "Though no other data is given for this beast, I suggest you run, RUN LIKE HECK BEFORE THAT MONSTER SENDS YOU THERE!!!"

"Quick everyone!" cried Misty, "Release your water Pokemon again!!!" But when they did, they discovered that they had used up all their water just fighting all those Houndours earlier. All they could do was squirt out tiny droplets.

"This looks bad", said Brock.

"More like satanic!" said Stella. Houndoom suddenly opened its mouth and launched a huge firebolt at our heroes. Cameron quickly closed his eyes waiting for his fiery death, but instead he didn't feel a thing. But he did find himself, and everyone else trapped in a huge cage made of fire.

"What I wouldn't give for a fireproof mug to clink across these bars", said Misty nervously.

"Look!" cried Bill as they saw Houndoom howling a loud howl and opening up a fiery pit in the street.

"I believe it's going to take us all back home to its master", said a frightened Agatha.

"NOOOO!" cried everyone as they held each other in fear. Reiko clutched onto Cameron tightly. "Cameron-san", she said while shaking. "Before we experience our eternal torment, I just want you to know that I.... I.....I...."

Cameron stood there nervous and silently waiting to hear what Reiko had to say. Just then Bill called out, "LOOK AGAIN!" There was Eevee biting the back of Houndoom's neck while it was running around trying to shake her off.

"No Eevee!" cried Agatha, "Save yourself! You're no match for this evil!" But Eevee refused to let go. Unfortunately Houndoom started rolling around on the street squashing Eevee flat.

"NOOOO!" cried Agatha. Just as Houndoom was about to have an Eeveening meal, Eevee jumped up and started changing her shape.

"It looks like your Eevee's going to evolve", said Seymour.

"But there aren't even any evolution stones around here", said Agatha as she watched in horror at what her little Eevee had become. She was now black with gold rings all over her body. Cameron took out Dexeena again. (Boy, is he gonna need some batteries for that thing when this night is through!)

"UMBREON, the dark form of Eevee", said Dexeena, "Nobody knows how an Eevee becomes an Umbreon, but it looks like you've got one now. You lucky dogs!" But it wasn't lucky for one dog for Umbreon seemed like a powerful fighter. It charged, bit, and totally thrashed every part of Houndoom's body. Then Umbreon released a confuse ray at Houndoom causing it to dance around in confusion slowly approaching the pit it just made. It then fell right down causing the pit to close up and the fire cage that was around our heroes to disappear.

Then the sun came out and all the people came out of hiding. They all cheered and hugged each other happy that the nightmare was over. Agatha slowly walked over to her newly evolved Umbreon.

"Careful Miss. Agatha", said Seymour, "It's still a dark Pokemon." But Umbreon just jumped into Agatha's arms and started licking her face.

"Hey, it still has Eevee's personality!" smiled Stella.

"Aw, I don't care if you do have dark blood in you", smiled Agatha, "You're still my little angel!"

"UM", cooed Umbreon happily.

"Reiko", asked Cameron, "What was it you were going to tell me earlier?"

"Well, I...I..." said Reiko who no longer had her fear looked at everyone and said, "That dog is nothing compared to what you'll experience when you're all prisoners to Team Rocket!" and she started laughing out loud while throwing a smoke bomb on the street. Cameron felt a kiss on his cheek and when the smoke cleared, Reiko was gone.

"She must be going back to the tower to get her teammates", said Jenny, "I've got them now! Come on Growlithe!" and she and her dog sped off to the direction of the tower.

"Did we get every single last one of those dark Pokemon?" Brock asked Agatha. She checked her counter and it read only 92 were caught. "No", she said sadly, "I fear that a few of them must've left town and disappeared into the horizon."

"You mean those dark ones are now loose in this world?" gasped Misty, "What if they start breeding?!"

"Our only hope is if really great trainers out there will find them, catch them, and train them well", said Agatha.

"That would really be a challenge", said Stella.

"It looks like our world will never be the same again", said Bill.

"Please forgive me Miss. Agatha", pleaded Seymour, "If you hadn't met me, Team Rocket wouldn't've followed us and opened up that ball. I deserve to be ripped to shreds by your Umbreon."

"Umbreon" said Agatha as she whispered something in her huge ears. Seymour closed his eyes waiting for Umbreon's mauling, but instead Umbreon just kissed him.

"Don't feel guilty Seymour", smiled Agatha. "These things happen without expectation and it were those Rockets that caused all of this, not you. Besides, maybe it's destiny for dark Pokemon to be roaming around in this world. They might serve humanity some kind of purpose."

"Maybe I might even catch and master one of those dark Pokemon", smiled Cameron.

"Oh please", said Misty, "You're starting to sound just like Ash." "Oh how I miss him!" she whispered quickly. Then they saw a frustrated Jenny and Growlithe heading back to the group.

"Did you arrest them?" asked Seymour.

"No", grumbled Jenny, "Reiko's ninja like speed must've enabled her to grab Jessie and Meowth and leave. I must suggest that all police officers train in the ways of the ninja."

* * * * * *

Meanwhile, Reiko had left Lavender Town in the Rocket balloon with Jessie still shaking and Meowth still frozen black as coal from the Murkrow's black gaze. "Don't worry Meowth-san", she said, "Once we find a Pokemon Center, you'll be back to abnormal soon. And don't you worry too my queen", she said to Jessie, "You're far away from any darkness for now."

"Th...th....thank you Reiko", shivered Jessie as she went to sleep dreaming of things that made her happy. Raising taxes, ripping pants labels off of girls that were sexier than her and bonking James and Meowth on the heads. "Ah, the pleasant things in life!" she sighed.

TO BE CONTINUED 


	16. The Great Slowbro Dispute

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 16

The Great Slowbro Dispute

Jessie and Reiko were staring at what looked like a lump of coal carved into a cat sitting on the grass. "I can't believe that this used to be the Meowth that made my underling life and my royal life a living heck!" said Jessie.

"It's like the defective VCR remote that gets stuck on pause that forces you to unplug it", said Reiko feeling a little pity for the poor Meowth. "But that old lady said the effects of the dark gaze can be cured if we take him to the nearest Pokemon center."

"Yeah, but my beautiful face is on every wanted poster in every Pokemon center in this country", said Jessie, "It's such a curse to be so wanted!"

"But I don't think a lifeless Meowth would be any use to us on this team", said Reiko, "Unless we need a huge paperweight."

"I'll just have him sent back to the Pokemon center at the Rocketville palace", said Jessie, "Luckily for us, the Nurse Joy there is the black sheep of her family." And she released Kadabra from its Pokeball. "Kadabra", said Jessie, "I need you to teleport Meowth back to the palace so he can get treated. Also bring James here too. Team Rocket just wouldn't be the same unless we have 3 members."

"Kadabra!" replied Kadabra as it picked up the paralyzed Meowth by the tail and disappeared from the two Rocket girls' sights.

* * * * * *

James was in his room having his own private fashion show. He was trying on Jessie's dresses and walking around like he was in Paris. "Aren't I something you'd wanna take home to Mamma?" said James slyly as he admired himself in a sleeveless red gown with matching gloves and pearls. Just then, Kadabra materialized right in front of him.

"What is this, some kind of funhouse mirror?" asked James wondering when he grew such a large bushy mustache. "Kadabra!" said Kadabra as it grabbed James's bare shoulder and teleported away with him.

* * * * * *

James suddenly found himself in a grassy field along with Jessie and Reiko. "What on my queen's great throne are you doing in that dress?!" asked Reiko.

"That's my favorite red gown!" shouted Jessie with fire in her eyes. "What are you doing in it?!!!"

"Uh, I just wanted to be like you?" James said quickly while sweating all over her expensive dress.

"If you've stretched it out of shape, I'll...." Shouted Jessie ready to strangle James's delicate neck.

"Did I ever tell you that your eyes match the color of this dress?" said James trying to save his skin. "Or is it just because you're mad right now? Oh gee, I put my high heel in my mouth!" Jessie grabbed the bottom of the dress and yanked it off James's body. Then the girls became even more shocked when they saw James wearing nothing but high heels, a pink bra, and flowery panties. "Don't worry Jess", said James, "These undergarments are mine!"

* * * * * *

Meanwhile Cameron and friends were pedaling down a road enjoying a nice day in this animated world. Cameron thought he could hear the cute music they played in the Gameboy whenever his character got on a bicycle.

"Why do we always keep hearing this strange music every time we get on bikes?" asked Misty.

"You can hear it too?!" said Cameron surprised. Just then a figure that looked like a little boy was standing in the middle of the road. "Hey, get out of the way!" shouted Jenny, but the boy just wouldn't budge. Everyone was forced to swerve out of the way. Seymour crashed into Cameron and Brock, while Stella crashed into Jenny and Misty causing poor Bill to fly out of Misty's basket and hit a nearby tree.

"Could somebody get the license number of that boy's butt?" asked Bill all dazed.

Everyone pedaled back to the boy in a clump of body and bicycle parts while the background music was totally messed up as well. "Just what do you think you're doing?!" shouted Misty who was the first to crawl out of the pile. "Didn't you see us?! Why didn't you move out of the way?!!!"

The boy was an eight year old dressed in a blue suit with blue shorts and a red bow tie. He just turned his nose up at Misty and said, "Why didn't you all move out of my way?"

"Why you little..." grumbled Misty as she was about to dig out her large mallet from her tiny pocket until Brock and Cameron held her back. "Take it easy Misty", said Brock, "He's only a kid."

"Yes", said the boy, "Listen to the dorky looking guy with no eyeballs!"

"Why you little..." grumbled Brock as he pulled the mallet from Misty's pocket and was ready to turn the little smart-mouth into a pancake until Jenny stopped him.

"I should give you a ticket for obstructing a road", said Jenny as she took out a pad and pen, "What's your name and who are your parents?"

"Kingston Frederick Silph", said the boy proudly. Jenny quickly put away her pad and pen and said, "My apologies master Silph, I meant no disrespect."

"WHAAAT!" shouted Misty, "Are you gonna let some snot nosed brat tell MMMGGLPH!!!" Jenny had covered Misty's mouth and gathered all her friends around her while Kingston stood there smirking.

"What's wrong Jenny?" asked Cameron, "Is that little boy important?"

"You'd better believe it!" said Jenny nervously, "That there is the son of Mr. Silph!"

"Not thee Mr. Silph?!!" gasped Stella, "The richest and most powerful man in the world?!" Cameron remembered the Silph building from his game and how the Rockets took it over and made the supposedly richest and most powerful man in the world their hostage.

"And that boy is very powerful too", said Jenny, "If I upset him, I could lose my badge!"

"Well I certainly don't have a badge he can take away!" growled Misty as she was about to march over and slug the kid until Jenny stopped her.

"And if you upset him, he could get all your info from the net and do unpleasant things to you and your family", Jenny warned her, "People and even kids with money can do that!"

"Can you imagine if Team Rocket owned all that money?" thought Cameron imagining a huge electric wall surrounding the entire Earth.

"Uh, excuse me", said Kingston, "There's a rich and powerful boy here that no one's paying any attention to!" Everyone looked down at the boy who was looking very bratty. "I came out here to chase all you trespassers off of my property!"

"What property?" asked Stella, "All we see are trees and a dirt road.

Kingston just took out a cell-phone and dialed it. "Cedric", said Kingston, "Move the dwelling over to where I'm standing please." Suddenly, a huge mansion on wheels drove over the trees and stopped right in the middle of the road. The wheels folded up and the mansion just plopped down there. "There's nothing like blocking a simple road so you can have a new outlook through your bedroom window. Isn't that right Officer?" said Kingston with a smug look on his face.

"You're so right Master Silph", said Jenny trying to stay as pleasant as she can while deep inside she was bubbling like a volcano. "Well if you'll excuse us, we'll all be on our way."

"Not so fast!" said Kingston as he jumped in front of Cameron and on his toes. Cameron tried to hold in the pain without yelping. "You've got Pokeballs on your belt", said Kingston, "Anyone who dares trespass on my property must challenge me to a Pokemon battle. What do you say?"

"Sure, anything", said Cameron hoping that would get this little brat off his feet. Kingston rang a little bell and a butler suddenly sped out of the mansion holding a velvet pillow. On it were three Pokeballs covered with gold, silver, and bronze.

"Thank you Cedric", said Kingston as he took the gold ball from the pile. "Go Bellsprout!" he shouted as he released a tiny Venus-Fly trap with a yellow head and something around its neck that looked like a tiny crown.

"What's that thing around the Bellsprout's neck?" asked Seymour.

"It's my official King's Symbol to show that these Pokemon are my property!" said Kingston. "A labcoat wearing peon like yourself wouldn't know of such things." Seymour was about to blow his top along with the testtubes and beakers he had in his coat. "So are we gonna battle or are you just gonna gawk at my riches since you're obviously not gonna get any anytime soon you common loser?"

Cameron started to feel the rage too. "All right", he said angrily, "V. P, let's show this kid and his plant what this common loser can do!" He released his Vileplume who made a fighting "VILE!"

"You call that a plant?" scoffed Kingston, "My gardener eats Pokemon like that for breakfast. I should know, since he works for minimum wage. Bellsprout, razor leaf now!"

"Bell!" said Bellsprout as it started flinging razor sharp leaves at V. P. "Quick V. P." shouted Cameron, "Use your cut attack!"

"VILE!!" shouted V. P. as it started spinning around like a top shredding up the leaves with its huge petals. V. P. then started spinning right at Bellsprout ready to do the same thing to it. "BELLSPROUT!!!" cried Bellsprout as it ran around trying to escape the spinning red petals of doom.

"Bellsprout, return", said Kingston with a mean look on his face as he pulled Bellsprout back in its gold ball.

"I guess this means you'll think twice before bad mouthing another commoner again", said Cameron proudly as he patted his happy Vileplume while all his friends were smiling at Kingston's defeat.

"You were just lucky!" grumbled Kingston as he took the silver ball. "And I'm gonna prove to you that money and snobbish ways will always win! Go Shellder!" Out popped a cute little clam that also had Kingston's symbol stuck on its shell.

"A water type", said Cameron, "That should be easy for you V. P. Use your mega-drain!"

V. P. was about to suck the water out of Shellder's shell until Kingston shouted out, "Shellder, aurora beam now!" Shellder launched a cold multi-colored beam at V. P. causing it to shiver and faint.

"Oh no, V. P!" cried Cameron as he hugged his slightly frosted flower.

"Any Pokemon genius would know that Shellders also have ice attacks and it wouldn't be a good idea to send grass Pokemon against it!" laughed Kingston, "Maybe I should have you sent off to Oxford to get some brains. That is if I didn't hate charity! HA HA HA HA!"

"This kid is just as bad as Gary", thought Misty and then she thought about and missed the rivalry of Gary and Ash.

"Okay then, I choose you Slowie!" said Cameron as he released his Slowpoke.

"Uh, oh", said Seymour, "Sending a Slowpoke to battle a Shellder could lead to trouble!"

"That Slowpoke looks totally dim", laughed Kingston, "Must be related to you!"

"Yes, you could say that", said Cameron as he saw Slowie looking up at his mamma's face. "Okay Slowie", said Cameron, "How about giving that Shellder a tri-attack?"

"Slow", replied Slowie as he launched his triangle of energy at the unmoving clam.

"Shellder, withdraw now!" commanded Kingston. Shellder closed its shell tight and glowed. The speeding triangle suddenly bounced off of Shellder like a pea and struck back at Slowie knocking him over on his back.

"You all right Slowie?" asked Cameron. "Slowpoke!" replied Slowie who didn't feel any pain at all. That is until a few seconds later.

"Okay Shellder", said Kingston, "Finish that Slowpoke off with a clamp attack!"

"NO, DON'T USE CLAMP!!!" cried Seymour. But it was too late. Shellder had clamped on good and hard at Slowie's tail. Suddenly, both Slowie and Shellder started to merge together.

"Slowie, what's happening to you?!" cried Cameron. When the merging was completed, there was Slowie now standing on his hind legs with the Shellder stuck on his butt, only it was now spiral shaped instead of bivalve shaped. "Slowbro?" replied Slowie.

"Yes", sighed Seymour, "When a Shellder clamps onto a Slowpoke's tail, you've got an instant Slowbro."

"Cool!" smiled Kingston in a mean smile, "I got me a brand new Pokemon!" He said as he hugged the shell part of Slowbro.

"Wait a minute!" said Cameron angrily, "Slowie is my son, I mean Pokemon!"

"But Shellder here is mine!" said Kingston as he took out a stamp and stamped his trademark King's Symbol on Slowie's left bottom leg. "And this mark shows he's mine!"

"If your Shellder hadn't clamped onto my Slowpoke, this wouldn't've happened!" shouted Cameron.

"You were the one who was dumb enough to send a Slowpoke to battle my Shellder in the first place!" shouted Kingston as he clutched onto Slowie. "So whoever caused the blunder first should pay the price!"

"You're already rich, so you can afford paying for it!" shouted Cameron as he grabbed onto Slowie while Kingston clutched onto Shellder causing an all out tug-of-war while Slowie was completely clueless to what was going on. All that stretching felt kind of relaxing to him.

The two boys suddenly stopped when they heard Jenny blow her whistle. "All right you two", she shouted, "You must stop this before you tear that poor Slowbro apart! There must be some way we can settle this!" Just then, a huge white limo that was as long as three Onixes drove up. Out stepped a man in a business suit with a cell phone attached to his shoulder.

"Daddy!" cried Kingston as he hugged the man's leg crying, what was obviously fake tears.

"Hello son", said Mr. Silph as he patted his son's black hair, "Say, did you move our mansion to another location again? I like it!"

"That's not important right now Father!" said Kingston. "I need your help on getting these mean bullies off our property!"

"Oh really?" said Mr. Silph, "And just what have you all been doing to my poor little angel?"

"You mean poor little fallen angel", grumbled Misty.

"Mr. Silph", said Jenny while holding her badge, "Your son and my friend here have gotten themselves in an unusual predicament with their Shellder and Slowpoke and we need to find some way to dissolve this matter." And she pointed to the Slowbro who sat there looking dopey at the richest man in the world.

"I see", said Mr. Silph, "Kingston, tell your daddy how all of this happened."

"Well", said Kingston in pretend sobs, "I saw these poor citizens injured from a bad bicycle accident so I brought our mansion over here to help them out in any way I can. But that kid with the glasses sent his Slowpoke to attack me so I had no choice to send out Shellder to protect myself. That Slowpoke suddenly got his tail stuck in Shellder's unsuspecting mouth causing my poor little Pokemon to become this new type. And now they want to take away my poor Shellder. WAAAAAAH!!!"

"That's all a big lie!" shouted Cameron angrily, "He was the one that challenged me to a match and ordered his Shellder to clamp onto Slowie!"

"It's just like a big sweatshirt wearing bully to say such a thing!" cried Kingston, "Please don't let him take away my poor Shellder!"

"Don't worry son, I'll handle this", said Mr. Silph as he took out his checkbook, wrote out a check, and handed it to Cameron. "Here you go", he said, "Here's a check for 25 cents if you'll let my son keep this Slowbro and all you ruffians never set foot on my property again. Wherever Kingston decides to put it next time."

"No way!" shouted Cameron, "Slowie here is my friend and he'd be horribly devastated if he ever has to leave me! Isn't that right Slowie?"

"Slowbro?" said Slowie who still had no idea about the trouble he was in.

"I guess that shows how much he cares about you", laughed Kingston.

"I know how to settle this", said Mr. Silph. "You boys will have a one against one Pokemon match. And the winner gets to keep Slowbro. What do you say?"

"No way!" cried Kingston, "I don't want any of my other Pokemon to be infected like poor Shellder!"

"That won't happen if you use You Know Who!" smiled Mr. Silph winking at his son.

"I'm in", said Kingston in a now happy, nasty mood, "How about you geek?"

"You got it", said Cameron desperately wanting to win Slowie back from this mean brat.

"You have to win", Jenny whispered into Cameron's ear, "Slowie has Sabrina's special mindzero attack installed in his head. Without it, we won't be a match against Mewtwo!"

"And this time, try not to send out a Pokemon that might fuse with his", said Bill.

"No problem", said Cameron knowing the perfect Pokemon that hardly lets him down. "Sandy, I choose you!" and Sandy popped on the ground ready for battle.

"Is that your best Pokemon?" laughed Kingston as he took the bronze ball from the pillow Cedric was holding. "Let's see how it does against DITTO!" and he released a tiny lump of pink jelly that had Kingston's official King's Symbol on it as well!

"A Ditto?" asked Cameron as he took out his Pokedex.

"DITTO: The transforming Pokemon", replied Dexeena, "Capable of copying an enemy's genetic code to transform itself instantly into a duplicate of the enemy."

And Ditto demonstrated by transforming into an exact copy of Sandy. Only it still had its King's Symbol on its chest.

"You'd better watch yourself Sandy", Cameron whispered to him. "Not only does that Ditto look like you, it also now knows all of your very attacks."

"Shrew?" said Sandy nervously.

"Ditto, launch any attacks you now know at that mouse!" smiled Kingston. "SHREW!" said Ditto as it dug underground ready to attack Sandy from where he was standing.

"HA!", laughed Kingston, "It looks like your precious little Sandshrew's about to be done in by its own specialty attack! And there's no way it can strike back from up here!"

"I wouldn't count on it!" smiled Cameron, "Sandy, get 'em with swift attack!"

"Shrew!" shouted Sandy as he threw his swift stars down in the hole Ditto just made. They all heard a loud, "DITTTO!" and out popped the Ditto back to its jelly like self with little glowing stars stuck in it like a Jello-mold.

"Don't worry Ditto", said Kingston, "I've got something that should make you feel a whole lot better!" and he showed Ditto the front of a comic book that had the picture of a giant Japanese robot on it. Ditto suddenly transformed into a 12 foot tall robot with guns on its wrists. It said, "DITTO" in a computerized voice. Sandy looked terrified at his new opponent.

"Hey, that's not fair!" whined Cameron, "That isn't even a Pokemon Ditto transformed into!"

"According to the League rules, anything a Ditto transforms into is perfectly legal", said Mr. Silph.

"Thanks Daddy!" said Kingston with a mean victorious smile, "Ditto, finish him off!"

"DITTO!" said Ditto as it shot its wrist guns and laser eye beams at Sandy who was successfully dodging every blow. Everyone ducked out of the way as Ditto's blasts hit the limo as well as the entire west wing of the mansion.

"Oh dear", said Mr. Silph, "And I had this year's tax forms in that room. Oh well, there's always next year."

Cameron uncovered his eyes and found that Sandy was nowhere to be seen. "Sandy?!" cried Cameron. Everyone looked around for Cameron's missing Sandshrew. Even Ditto was looking around for its opponent. Cameron suddenly saw Sandy who was clinging onto Ditto's back.

"Shhhhh!" whispered Sandy as he smiled and placed a claw up to his lips. Cameron smiled as he saw Sandy spraying some sand into the open vents of Ditto's robot back. Suddenly Ditto started to blow fuses all over the place dancing around out of control. Sandy jumped off just in time as Ditto exploded leaving gobs of pink jelly covering the entire area. It was all over everyone.

"Yeeech!" said Stella, "Anyone got any peanut butter?" Then the jelly crawled off of everyone and reverted back to the tiny little Ditto who suddenly fainted.

"No Ditto!" cried Kingston. "You have to keep fighting! My reputation is at stake!"

Mr. Silph bent down and examined Ditto, "I'm sorry son", he said, "But this Ditto's out for the count. I guess that means this young man wins the Slowbro."

All of our heroes cheered for joy, especially Cameron who hugged Sandy for his biggest triumph of all and Slowie for he wasn't going to lose him after all.

"Best two out of three!" demanded Kingston in a rage. "I'm not gonna lose that Shellder of mine!"

"Sorry", said Cameron, "I would love to give you your Shellder back, but I don't know how."

Just then, a huge cage fell through the sky and landed on the entire group trapping them in.

"Kingston, did you order another girl scout trap in the mail again?" asked Mr. Silph.

"Uh oh", said Brock, "It's time to prepare for trouble again!"

"Hey, that's our line!" called out a familiar guy's voice as two familiar figures appeared from behind the damaged limo.

"Prepare for trouble!" said Jessie.

"And make it double!" said James.

Jessie: "To protect the world from devastation!"  
James: "To unite all peoples within our nation!"  
Jessie: "To denounce the evils of truth and love!"  
James: "To extend our reach to the stars above!"  
Jessie: "Queen Jessie!"  
James: "King James!"  
Jessie: "Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"  
James: "Surrender now or prepare to fight!"  
Reiko: "Like the arrow sign that points in the opposite direction of left, That's right!"

"Hey Reiko, our motto's long enough as it is", scolded James. Reiko just pointed her katana at James's neck.

"If my little intern likes to add her own ending, it's okay with me", said Jessie liking the way Reiko handles James's complaining.

"She may be vowed to serve Team Rocket, but she certainly won't let any of them walk all over her", thought Cameron.

"You can't do this to us!" shouted Mr. Silph, "Do you know who I am?!"

"Didn't I see your face on my Monopoly box?" asked James.

"No, I'm Mr. Silph!" he shouted. "And me and my son won't stand for being locked up in a cage on our property. Actually, this new property, but you get the idea!" and he blew a whistle and a bunch of security guards ran out of the mansion surrounding the Rockets.

"Weezing, haze attack!" said James as he released Weezing who sprayed a thick fog around the guards who couldn't see who they were supposed to arrest. Reiko easily disarmed them and then tied and gagged them.

"Excellent work Reiko", smiled Jessie as she patted Reiko's bowed head.

"What about me and Weezing?" asked James.

"Oh yeah", said Jessie, "Nice job too!" and without thinking she whacked James's head because that what she was used to doing to him.

"Please forgive me for this Cameron-san", Reiko whispered to Cameron through the bars.

"I understand Reiko", whispered Cameron back.

"What are you two whispering about?" demanded Kingston, "Don't tell me that this wacked-out criminal is your girlfriend?!"

Reiko angrily lifted Kingston up by the tie and replied, "Like the little Oddish that has not yet developed its bloom. Little rug rats like you shouldn't be thinking about sexes just yet!" and she threw Kingston on the ground causing him to run crying into his father's arms.

"My hero!" thought Cameron even if she was a villain right now.

"Just what were you talking to them about?" asked a suspicious James.

"Uh, I've just learned that this kid has loads of money, entertainment systems, and fun stuff stashed away inside that mansion", said Reiko, "Doesn't it just want to make you rob it like a schoolgirl?"

"Why yes it does!" smiled Jessie who eyed the huge joint with diamond shaped eyes. "I hear by give you permission to steal, plunder, and totally thrash this place in any way you feel!"

"Arigato, my queen", said Reiko as she did a huge back flip to the entrance of the mansion and rushed in. Mainly she wanted some time alone so she could figure out a plan to help Cameron.

"She might steal my Pokemon cards!" cried Kingston, "We've gotta stop her!"

"What do you mean we?" asked Misty.

"I wouldn't worry about all your stuff kid", said James.

"Yes", smiled Jessie evily, "Because you'll all be coming back to Rocketville with us along with all your valuable stuff! HA HA HA HA!" Just then, Jessie and James heard a loud "SLOWBRO!" They turned around and found Slowie standing there ready to defend his master. Whoever that might be in the future.

"How did Slowie get out there?" asked Cameron.

"The cage must've missed him when it dropped on all of us", said Brock.

"Well you may've escaped our little cage, but you'll never escape your natural Poke-trap!" smiled Jessie as she took out an empty Pokeball. Just then, Slowie started to take a deep breath and blasted out a huge blizzard at Team Rocket.

"Wow", gasped Cameron, "I don't remember teaching Slowie blizzard!"

"But I did teach my Shellder that trick", said Kingston.

"Amazing", said Seymour, "It seems that not only the Slowpoke and Shellder share bodies, but thoughts and attacks as well."

"Slowbro!" said Slowie as he and Shellder both winked.

* * * * * *

Reiko had just come out of the mansion with Tentacruel and Kingler following her. Their tendrils and claws were loaded with jewels, money, furniture, entertainment systems, and all sorts of other things from Kingston's room. She then saw Jessie and James frozen solid in blocks of ice. Reiko quickly ran up to them and asked Cameron. "What just happened to them?!"

"It was the work of Slowie here", said Cameron as he patted Slowie's head through the bars.

"And my Shellder too", said Kingston as he patted the Shellder part of Slowbro.

"Well I can't bring all of you, these stolen goods, and my two frozen monarchs back to Rocketville all on my own!" said Reiko, "I am not that resourceful! Tentracruel, Kingler, drop those goods."

Tentacruel and Kingler let all that valuable stuff drop onto the dirty ground. "My underwear better not be in that pile!" shouted Kingston.

"Relax kid", said Reiko, "I'm not that demented. Tentacruel, Kingler, pick up our frozen king and queen if you would." Tentacruel lifted up Jessie while Kingler picked up James. "Well you filthy rebels", she sneered, "It looks like I'll have to leave you right now. My king and queen need some serious defrosting." She said as she took out a bottle of extra spicy wasabi. "But like the junk food that always comes back to torment you, you haven't seen the last of Team Rocket! HA HA HA HA!" She threw a smoke bomb on the ground and everything went black. Cameron felt Reiko kiss his cheek and when the smoke cleared, Team Rocket was gone as usual.

"It looks like we're safe for now", said Stella.

"Yeah, but we're still locked in this cage!" whined Kingston, "I sure hope none of my even snootier friends see me like this!"

Cameron felt something tucked between his ear and glasses. It was the key to the cage. Reiko had tucked it in there during her little smoke bomb trick. "Arigato Reiko!" smiled Cameron as he unlocked the cage and everyone was set free.

"Maybe having a wacked-out criminal for a girlfriend's a good thing", said Kingston. Cameron was about to strangle that kid until Slowie tackled Cameron onto the ground and hugged him.

"Aw, thank you Slowie", smiled Cameron as he hugged him back. "No matter who owns you, I'll always be your mamma!"

"Mamma?!" asked Kingston surprised.

"Yes", explained Brock, "When that Slowpoke first hatched, Cameron was the first face he saw, so he thinks Cameron's his mother."

"I remember losing my mother when I was five", said Kingston with tears in his eyes. "It was the most saddest day of my life. Then one day, Daddy gave me my very first Pokemon. It was that Shellder. I could always talk to him whenever I had a bad day or whenever I was picked on by bigger even richer kids. Shellder was my best friend in the whole world." And he approached the Slowbro and hugged the Shellder part of it while his tears ran down the spiral shapes.

"Wow", thought Cameron, "This brat really does care for his Pokemon. If I could do the right thing, I'd let him have his Shellder back by giving him the whole Slowbro. But then poor Slowie would be terribly sad if he has to leave his mother, which I am not really. What a predicament!"

Misty looked into her backpack and said, "I think I have a way!" She pulled out the Waterstone that her sister gave her and approached Slowie. "I sure hope this works", she said as she placed the stone against the Shellder part. Suddenly, Shellder fell off of Slowie's bottom causing him to devolve back into a Slowpoke.

"Slowpoke?" he said looking up at Cameron.

"Yes", smiled Cameron with joy in his eyes, "You're back!"

"Shellder?!" cried Kingston for his Shellder didn't devolve back into his original shape, but a new one. He was bivalve shaped again, but was a lot bigger and stronger and spikes were sticking out of his shell. Cameron aimed his Pokedex at Kingston's new Pokemon.

"CLOYSTER, the evolved form of Shellder", replied Dexeena. "When attacked, it launches its horns in quick volleys. The Cloyster's innards have never been seen."

The Cloyster opened up his shell and Kingston saw his little black face smiling at him. "Cloy!" he said.

"Aw, Shellder. I mean Cloyster!" cried Kingston with tears. "I'm so glad I'm not gonna lose you!"

"Thank you Misty", said Cameron while holding Slowie, "But your sister gave you that stone so you could evolve a great Pokemon one day."

"I know", said Misty smiling. "But I remember how you tried to fight my sisters to save my honor. They would've never given me that stone if you hadn't did that. So you truly deserve that great Slowpoke of yours."

"Thanks Misty", said Cameron blushing while Slowie was wondering why his mamma looked all red in the face. "Maybe Mamma's finally getting her pink skin like me", he thought.

Kingston humbly approached the group and said, "Thank you", in a tearful voice. "I'm sorry for acting like such a brat and for getting all your bikes wrecked and for threatening to take your Slowpoke away. I think I know how I can make it up to all of you." He ran over to his father and asked, "Daddy, can I use this week's allowance for...." And he started whispering something.

* * * * * *

Our heroes were now back on the road in their new R. V.! Kingston and Mr. Silph were waving goodbye as they disappeared into the horizon. "You know son", smiled Mr. Silph, "That was a very nice thing you did by giving them that R.V. Maybe you're not really the brat my servants tell me you are."

"I wouldn't count on it", thought Kingston as thoughts of slingshots and spitballs danced around in his head.

* * * * * *

A few days later, our heroes were resting in a field next to a beautiful stream. Everyone had let all their Pokemon out to play. Sandy saw Slowie sitting on a rock with the King's Symbol still on his left bottom leg. "You still have that thing stamped on you?" asked Sandy. Slowie just let out a mournful sigh.

"Hey, don't worry Slowie" said Sandy, "If we let Cameron know about that mark. I'm sure he can get it off with some soap and, UGH, water!"

"It's not that Sandy", sighed Slowie, "It's just that I kind of liked being a Slowbro for a while. I got to stand on my hind legs, I learned a new blizzard attack, and having a Shellder attached to me made my butt feel smart."

"But at least you got changed back so you wouldn't have to leave your mamma", winked Sandy.

"Yeah, that's right!" smiled Slowie, "But I still wished I could've stayed my evolved form so I could be a better Pokemon to mamma!"

Psyduck was sitting in the shallow end of the stream listening to Sandy's and Slowie's conversation. "I don't like seeing my best friend, Slowie this way!" said Psyduck. "If there was some way I can make him evolve again, I'd do it for him. Think Psyduck think! Oh no, I'm getting a headache again. But wait, it's not in my head. It's my tail?!" Psyduck quickly jumped out of the water and found a wild Shellder clamped onto his tail. "My prayers have been answered!" smiled Psyduck as he pulled the Shellder off his tail and ran over to Slowie. "Hey Slowie", he quacked, "Look what I got for WHOOPS!!! PSY-YAI-YAI!!!" Psyduck had tripped on a tiny rock causing him to toss Shellder up into the air.

"What's that?" asked Slowie looking up in the sky.

"It's my gift to you", said Psyduck, "Quick, stick your tail up in the air!"

"Okay", said Slowie as he stuck his long tail straight up wondering what that thing falling from the sky was. However, the Shellder missed Slowie's tail and clamped onto his head.

"Uh, oh", said Psyduck, "Misty's probably gonna clobber me again for this!"

"Oh no, what's that dumb Psyduck done now?!" shouted Misty as she pointed to Slowie with a Shellder stuck on his head. Then they both started merging while Cameron and the others rushed over to them.

"Am I gonna get a Slowbro again?" asked Cameron. But Slowie didn't evolve into a Slowbro. Instead he was a new type of Pokemon. He was standing on his hind legs once again, but he had a frilly red and white collar around his neck and the Shellder on his head was now spiral shaped with spikes on it. Almost like a crown. "I've never seen a Pokemon like this before!" gasped Cameron as he took out his Pokedex.

"SLOWKING: An alternate evolution of Slowpoke", replied Dexeena. "It is said if a Shellder clamps onto the head of a royal Slowpoke, you suddenly get a rare Slowking."

"Wow!" smiled Cameron as he hugged his new Slowking, "I had no idea you had royal blood in you."

"I believe it all had something to do with that King's Symbol still stamped onto Slowie's leg", said Seymour. "Very interesting!"

"Congratulations your majesty", smiled Sandy bowing down to Slowie.

"Aw, please stop!" said Slowie blushing, "On second thought, do it a little more."

"Wow Psyduck", smiled Misty, "Just when I think you'll always be a menace to all life forms, you surprise me!"

"Slowking!" said Slowie saying thank you to his best friend for making his dream happen.

"Psyduck!" said Psyduck proudly bowing to Slowie. "Say", thought Psyduck, "Maybe I'll become a Psyking if a Shellder clamps onto my head! Then Misty'll have to bow to me for a change!" and Psyduck quickly dove into the stream hoping a Shellder would clamp onto his head. Then he remembered that he couldn't swim. "PSY-YAI-YAI-YAI-YAI!!!!" screamed Psyduck splashing around.

"Psyduck, you'll always be the king of fools!" sighed Misty as she stepped into the stream and fished him out.

TO BE CONTINUED


	17. Reiko's Reunion

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 17

Reiko's Reunion

Our heroes were now in Fuchsia. They had hid their new R.V. behind a cluster of trees and they were on their way to the Fuchsia gym so Cameron could compete for a SoulBadge and hopefully hide from Team Rocket for a while.

"So which way is it to the Fuchsia gym?" asked Bill.

"According to my map", said Jenny, "If we head south down that hill, we'll find the gym that's almost as big as one acre."

"And was it ever long too!" groaned Misty remembering all the twists, turns, and boobie traps that that particular gym had.

Well then lets get going!" smiled Cameron as he released Sandy, "Ready to win me another badge champ?" he asked.

"Shrew!" said Sandy ready to take on his next opponent. Just then, a little girl in a Japanese school uniform jumped out from a nearby bush. "That's a neat Sandshrew you have there", said the girl in a cute Japanese accent.

"Thank you", said Cameron as he and Sandy both bowed to the girl.

"But is it good against my Charmander?" smiled the girl as she released a cute little orange lizard with a flame on its tail. "CHAR!" it said.

"What do you say we have a battle?" asked the girl bowing to Cameron.

"How about it Sandy?" asked Cameron, "So you can warm up before our big match against the gym leader?"

"Shrew!" said Sandy as he jumped right in front of Charmander ready to put out its flame.

"Charmander, fire spin!" commanded the girl.

"CHAR!" shouted Charmander as it breathed fire and trapped Sandy in a red-hot tornado making him unable to escape or fight back.

"Quick Sandy, dig to freedom!" shouted Cameron. When the fire cleared, they found Sandy gone and a hole from where he was standing last.

"Uh oh!" said the girl.

"Char, char!" said Charmander knowing what was gonna happen next. Suddenly Sandy burst out of the ground from where Charmander was standing knocking the poor lizard on its head.

"Charrie!" cried the girl as she picked it up and rubbed its slightly bruised head.

"I'm sorry we had to do that to your Charmander", apologized Cameron.

"That's okay", said the girl bowing to him. "I'm going to make my Charmander stronger so in case we meet again, it'll be sure to beat your Sandshrew."

Sandy and Charmander both bowed to each other and then Charmander got back into the Pokeball the girl was holding out. She bowed goodbye to everyone and left. "Congratulations Sandy", smiled Cameron as he was about to pet him. But then stopped for Sandy was starting to glow. It looked like tiny little quills were sprouting out of his back. "Sandy, what's happening to you?!" gasped Cameron.

"I believe that Sandy is about to evolve", said Seymour taking out a pad and pencil so he can study the evolution of a Sandshrew.

"Yes, you might be now getting a Sandslash", said Bill who was also fascinated.

"A Sandslash?!" said Cameron excitedly as he took out his Pokedex and looked up Sandslash. On the screen appeared a mouse that looked almost like a Sandshrew. Except it was bigger with huge sharp claws and long brown quills sticking out of its back.

"SANDSLASH: The mouse Pokemon, the evolved form of Sandshrew", replied Dexeena, "Curls up into a spiny ball when threatened. It can roll while curled up to hunt for food."

"Cool!" smiled Cameron excitedly, "I can't wait to get me a Sandslash!"

"I didn't know you liked Sandslashes", said Misty.

"Back in my world, everyone on the net had a debate on which Pokemon was the Slash Master and most of them voted for Sandslash, including me!" smiled Cameron as he watched Sandy who was still glowing. "Go Sandy go!" shouted Cameron, "Let's see you work your Sandslash magic!"

All of a sudden, Sandy stopped glowing. He took a deep breath and sucked the tiny quill points back into his back. "Sandshrew!" said Sandy who was still the same Sandshrew he always was.

Cameron became shocked, "Why did you stop?" he demanded, "You were just about to become a more stronger, powerful Pokemon! Why did you do that to yourself, and to me too?"

"Shrew, shrew, Sandshrew!", said Sandy trying his best to explain why he didn't evolve.

"I can't understand a word you're saying", said Cameron very annoyed!

"Can you understand what he's saying Bill?" Stella asked him.

"What?" grumbled Bill, "You assume that I can speak the language of Sandshrew just because I have a rodent's body?!"

"But you did say you knew the Rattata language by heart", said Brock.

"Rattata yes, but Sandshrew's kind of a whole different language", said Bill. "Oh, all right. I'll find out what's up with Sandy!" Bill ran up to Sandy and tried his best to speak his language. When they were done, Bill approached Cameron while Sandy looked at his master hoping he'd understand.

"What did Sandy say?" asked Cameron.

"I'm not sure", said Bill, "It sounded something like my purple-striped suited cable guy is drinking a wine glass of dishwater." Everyone looked funny at Bill.

"At least I know that there was an "a" in his sentence", protested Bill.

Cameron then approached Sandy, "Come on Sandy", he said in a reasonable voice, "Why won't you evolve for me?"

"Sandshrew!" said Sandy who was now speaking in an annoyed voice and quickly turned his armored back on his master.

"Fine!" grumbled Cameron, "If you're gonna be like that, you can just get back in your Pokeball!" and he pulled out Sandy's ball and sucked him back in. "SHREW!!!" Sandy growled out loud just as soon as the ball closed up on him.

"Don't you think you were a little hard on Sandy?" asked Misty.

"It's just that when I played my Gameboy, all the Pokemon I owned were willing to evolve for me", said Cameron. "And I just don't see how Sandy can be a good Pokemon if he doesn't evolve."

"But remember Cameron", said Seymour, "This isn't your game. This is real life! Our world may not seem real to you, but you're now in our reality and you just can't treat Pokemon like computer chips in a game system."

"I remember when Ash's Bulbasaur was about to evovle, it stopped itself", said Brock, "Ash was able to respect Bulbasaur's wishes and Bulbasaur became one of the toughest Pokemon I've seen even if it was still in its first stage."

Cameron looked at Sandy's Pokeball and started to feel pretty small. He wanted to be like Ash and forcing a Pokemon to change itself if it doesn't want to was very un-Ashlike.

"Besides", continued Stella, "Wasn't it you who taught me that Pokemon should be loved, not mistreated?"

"You're all right", said Cameron with tears in his eyes. He opened up the ball and released Sandy. He was actually crying and his tears were hurting his sand-covered body. "Sandy, I'm sorry", cried Cameron as he lifted up his Sandshrew and cradled him like a baby. "I had no right to force you to become something you didn't want to be. I still don't know why you don't want to become a Sandslash, but I'm going to respect your wishes from now on. You can stay the cute little Sandshrew who rescued me from Team Rocket the very first day I came to this world. Can we still be friends?"

Sandy looked up at his sorry-filled master, then smiled and started licking his face showing that he was forgiven. "Aw, thank you Sandy!" smiled Cameron. "You're the best Pokemon and friend a kid could ask for!"

"Sandshrew!" said Sandy while winking at all of Cameron's friends who were smiling at the dynamic duo.

* * * * * *

Our heroes had finally reached the entrance of the Fuchsia gym. "Well, I guess we all should go in", said Jenny.

"Just watch out for any spinning walls, upside down rooms, and hidden Voltorbs", said Misty.

"And for any cute girls throwing metal stars", said Brock.

"Don't worry Brockie", smiled Stella, "If any cute girls go after you, I'll personally put 'em in their place!" and she took out her circus whip.

When they all stepped in, they found a hallway that was almost a mile long. "No doubt that there are invisible booby traps just waiting to eat our flesh", said Misty nervously.

"Leave everything to me", said Bill as he took one tiny crumb of cheese and threw it through the hallway. Suddenly, the walls started to spin around while metal stars, seltzer bottles, itching powder, and TVs showing the Teletubbies started to pop out all over the place. Soon all the chaos stopped while our heroes were still standing near the entrance unharmed.

"Now that I've taken care of all the booby traps, shall we proceed?" asked Bill. Everyone walked through the mess of liquid and weapons on the floor while Cameron noticed something on the wall. "Hey everyone, look at this." He called out. Everyone looked at the huge portrait that consisted of a man, a young lady, and an eight-year-old girl.

"I recognize that guy", said Misty, "That's Koga, the gym leader of this place."

"And that young lady is his little sister Aya", said Brock who was about to blush, but then stopped himself for Stella was still holding onto her whip.

"But that little girl looks so familiar", said Cameron studying the pretty face of the girl in the red kimono with a toy katana in her hand.

"Have you seen her on your TV show?" asked Misty.

"No", said Cameron, "But if she were a little older like 14, I could swear that she's....." But then the picture slid back and a huge rectangle-shaped hole in the wall appeared. Then a powerful vortex started to suck Cameron right into it.

"Hold on Cameron!" shouted Stella as she used her whip to snare Cameron's ankle, but unfortunately she got pulled in as well.

"STELLA!!!" shouted Brock as he grabbed onto his girlfriend while Misty grabbed onto Brock while Seymour grabbed onto Misty while Jenny grabbed onto Seymour while holding Bill in her other hand.

"Why are you holding onto me?" shouted Bill as they were being sucked in, "I'm supposed to be holding onto you!"

"Oops, sorry", said Jenny blushing while our seven friends plummeted out from a ceiling and onto a soft mattress.

"Could this thrill ride get any more scary?" moaned Seymour. Just then, two sets of swords held by two dark shadows suddenly surrounded our heroes.

"As an officer, I should outlaw this unsafe ride", thought Jenny.

"Those who enter the Fuchsia gym without knocking will feel the wrath of the ninja", said one of the shadows in a pretty female voice.

"Hold it sister", said the second in a male voice, "I believe the lady here is an Officer Jenny. The law has every right to come in here unannounced."

"Oh, very well", sighed the girl as she put away her sword and lit a Japanese lantern. There they saw Koga and Aya who were helping them off the mattress.

"Greetings officer", said Koga bowing to all of them. "Aya and I want to apologize for this most unpleasant way of meeting all of you. Are we in some kind of trouble?"

"Oh, none at all", smiled Jenny, "But you should really buy a burglar alarm for your gym instead of all those life threatening gadgets. The reason we're here is because my friend Cameron wants to challenge you for a SoulBadge."

"Hello young man", smiled Koga studying the blond-haired kid with glasses. "You know, that hat you're wearing reminds me of another boy I knew a while back. Isn't that right sister?"

"Yes indeed", smiled Aya. "You're talking about Ash Ketchum. The boy who saved our gym and Pokemon from those dishonorable Rockets."

"Oh, Ash!" thought Misty as she was about to go into tears again, but then stopped herself and smiled when the ninjas looked at her and Brock.

"And you're Brock", smiled Aya, "I remember the way you last looked at me all red and giddy."

"Oh yeah", whispered Brock who was about to do it again, but then remembered that Stella was a lot more dangerous than Aya.

"And you're Misty", smiled Koga, "The girl who owned that impressive Psyduck. Do you still want to trade him for my Venomoth?"

"Uh, no thanks", smiled Misty, "No matter what, I'd never want to give away Psyduck." Then Psyduck popped out of Misty's backpack and gave her a huge kiss on the face. "YEEECCH!!!" cried Misty, " Psyduck! Don't let me take back my last sentence!!!"

"Psyduck?" wondered Psyduck.

"On second thought", said Koga, "You keep him."

"Tell me", asked Aya, "Why isn't Ash here with you?"

Misty was about to break down until Brock got in her way and said, "Uh, he couldn't be with us right now. But Cameron here would really like to be a great Pokemon trainer like Ash. Can you help him out by letting him compete for a SoulBadge?"

"I'd be honored if I can battle you Mr. Koga", said Cameron as he bowed to him.

"My what a polite boy you are", said Koga, "But unfortunately, I cannot battle you."

"But why?" asked Cameron.

"Because I'm not the gym leader here anymore", said Koga, "I'm now a member of the Elite Four. Agatha is supposed to be retiring soon and she chose me to take her place as one of the Elite Ones."

"I do remember Agatha telling me that she was planning on retiring soon", said Seymour, "And she was going to find someone to pass on the mantle to. Congratulations Mr. Koga, I know she chose well."

"Arigato Mr. Scientist", said Koga, "I just received a visit from Agatha a couple of days ago. I plan on doing her proud."

"Congratulations Mr. Koga", said Cameron, "But I'd still would've liked to battle you for a SoulBadge."

"Why don't you ask the new Fuchsia gym leader?" smiled Koga.

"Who is he?" asked Cameron.

"You mean she!" said Aya as she leapt in front of Cameron with a katana, just like someone he knows. "Yes, while my dear brother goes off to become an Elite Pokemon master, I will take over his burdens and defeat and humiliate any trainer that dares to enter and take on the powers of the Fuchsia gym." And he pointed her katana at Cameron's chest.

"Please sister", scolded Koga, "I wish you wouldn't do that to every person who is younger and smaller than you. You remember what happened six years ago."

"Forgive me please", said Aya bowing her head down in shame.

"What did you exactly do six years ago?" asked Stella.

"Never mind about that now", said Aya now with a smile, "I have my very first battle as a gym leader to look forward to." And she grabbed Cameron's wrist and rushed him into another room while everyone followed them.

* * * * * *

Outside the gym, Team Rocket was studying the huge gym trying to figure out a way to get in. "Oh Cameron-san", Reiko mumbled in Japanese. "It's bad enough you had to come to Fuchsia, but did you also have to come to this gym?!"

"Those rebels must be in that gym", said Jessie, "They've already visited 5 so far. We've got them now!"

"But don't you remember that particular gym?" whined James, "It's filled with spinning rooms and explosives. I can feel those migraines coming back to me! Get them out of my head!"

"My pleasure James-san!" groaned Reiko as she bopped him on the head with her mallet.

"Thank you Reiko", said James smiling, or what little smile he had left since some of his teeth fell out.

"Your majesty", Reiko turned to Jessie, "Allow me and my Pokemon to go in there alone and take on all those rebels and the dangers of that gym. A ninja like me can dodge and fight anything that gym can throw at me."

"Are you sure about that?" asked Jessie, "What do you say James?"

"Sure, let her go alone", said James hoping he wouldn't have to go into that gym and also hoping he'd be far away from that harmful Reiko for a few minutes.

"I shall return", said Reiko as she rushed over to a bottom window of the gym and crawled in.

"Ah, it feels good for a change to have someone else do your dirty work for you", smiled Jessie as she pulled a deckchair out from nowhere and sat down in it.

"I though I was the one who always did your dirty work?" whined James, "Don't tell me I've been replaced?!"

"Here's some dirty work just for you!" grumbled Jessie as she rubbed a clump of dirt into James's face.

"You do still care about me!" said James in dirty tears.

* * * * * *

Our heroes were now in a large training room where Cameron was on one side and Aya was on the other. "We'll use 3 Pokemon each", said Aya, "No time limit. You release your Pokemon first."

"All right", said Cameron, "Buzz, I choose you!" and out popped Electabuzz who saluted Cameron as usual and let out his usual, "BUZZ, EL BUZZ!"

"Your Electabuzz sure looks disciplined", said Aya, "But is it good enough against Ekans?!" and she released a pink rattlesnake that hissed, "EKANS!!!"

"Electabuzz, use your thunderpunch!" commanded Cameron. Buzz balled up his fist that caused a lot of sparks to fly out and was about to strike the unmoving snake.

"Ekans, screech attack!" commanded Aya. Ekans let out a loud screeching noise that caused everyone in the room to cover their ears including Buzz. "All right Ekans", smiled Aya, "Get him with your wrap attack!" Ekans then coiled itself tightly around Buzz pinning his arms to his sides and started squeezing him very hard.

"BUZZZZZ!" gasped Buzz while sparks were shooting out of his antennas.

"Very nice sister", called out Koga, "I'm glad I have at least one sister here who can take care of this gym." And then he closed his eyes and went into a deep sad thought.

"Quick Buzz", shouted Cameron, "Use your flash attack!" Buzz concentrated and let loose a blinding flash in the entire room causing everyone to forget their sore ears and rub their eyes. Buzz was now free while Ekans was spread out on the floor blinded. "All right Buzz, finish it off with your strength!" smiled Cameron.

"BUZZ, EL BUZZ!" shouted Buzz as he grabbed both ends of Ekans and started to use it as a jump rope and a lasso. Aya became shocked when Buzz started tying up Ekans in knots. "Buzz truly is a boy scout", said Brock as he recognized some of the knots his brothers who were boy scouts used.

"GRRRR, you'll pay for that!" said Aya annoyed as she sucked Ekans back into its ball and pulled out another. "Go Grimer!" she shouted and released a huge clump of purple sludge that shouted "GRIME!"

"Grimer is pure liquid Buzz", said Cameron, "I bet you can finish it off with a thunderbolt attack!"

"BUZZ!" smiled Buzz as he started charging himself up. Just as he was about to launch his thunderbolt, Aya shouted out, "Grimer, minimize now!" Buzz released his powerful bolt, but it hit the nearby wall instead with Grimer nowhere to be found.

"Oh no!" gasped Cameron, "We killed your Grimer!"

"Relax young warrior", smiled Aya as she threw him a magnifying glass. "Grimer's very okay. He's just harder to hit now." Cameron looked through the glass and found a very microscopic Grimer waving at him.

"Oh good", said Cameron now relieved that Grimer was still alive, "And oh drat!" he groaned for he forgotten how annoying it was battling a minimized Pokemon.

"Grimer, body slam now!" commanded Aya. Buzz suddenly fell to the ground all paralyzed. "Buzz!" cried Cameron as he took the magnifying glass and found the tiny Grimer waving its slimy hands in victory.

"You may as well give up boy", scoffed Aya, "There is no way on Earth you can beat my tiny Grimer!"

"Oh yeah!" said Cameron as he pulled Buzz back into his ball and took out another ball. "Sandy, I choose you!" and Sandy popped out of the ball ready to show his master what a simple Sandshrew can do.

"Grimer, sludge attack!" commanded Aya. Grimer may be small, but his sludge attacks were still enormous. It was like an invisible man was throwing sludge at Sandy. But Sandy managed to dodge all of Grimer's pollution.

"All right Sandy, use your swift attack", smiled Cameron for he knew that no Pokemon can escape the very accurate swift attack no matter if they're up in the air, underground, or very tiny. Sandy threw all his swift stars at what looked like an empty spot on the floor. Aya took out her own magnifying glass and found Grimer splattered on the floor.

"I guess you win this round too", said Aya as she sucked Grimer back into its ball and then pulled out her final ball. "Let's see how your little Sandy does against his superior form. Go Sandslash!" and out popped a Sandslash that looked like the exact copy Cameron found in his Pokedex. It sharpened its huge claws and spread out its long quills ready to humiliate the tiny Sandshrew.

"A Sandslash?!" gasped Cameron, "Uh, oh." But Sandy just smiled and wiggled its finger at Cameron for he wanted to show his master that he didn't need to evolve into a Sandslash to be a great Pokemon. "All right Sandy", sighed Cameron, "Get 'em with your rock slide!"

"SHREW!" shouted Sandy as he started to make and throw some boulders at Sandslash. "Sandslash", smiled Aya, "Live up to your last name now!"

"SLASH!!!" shouted Sandslash as it slashed up all the boulders into tiny pebbles. "Now give that little pipsqueak your poison sting attack!" smiled Aya.

"SLASH!!" smiled Sandslash as it started shooting glowing needles from its quills trying to hit Sandy. But unfortunately, Sandy did get hit by one of them and fell to the ground all poisoned.

"Oh no, Sandy!" cried Cameron as he tried to suck Sandy back into his ball, but dodged the beam. "You can't seriously want to keep fighting?" cried Cameron, "You've just been poisoned! Let me send Zubat out. She's immune to poison attacks!"

"Sandshrew!" cried Sandy as he jumped back into the ring for he still wanted to battle and defeat his evolved form. "It's too bad your Sandshrew's not as disciplined as your Electabuzz", laughed Aya. "But I'll be glad to punish him for you. Sandslash, finish him off with your fury swipes!"

"SLASH!" shouted Sandslash as it was about to slice up the poor poisoned Sandy to pieces. But Sandy smiled and sprayed a box load of sand into Sandslash's eyes causing it to go blind. Then the small Sandshrew quickly knocked the large Sandslash onto the ground and started fury swiping its belly more than a hundred times. Then Sandslash fainted while Sandy jumped off and made his trademark victory sign at Cameron.

"Nice job Sandy!" said Cameron proudly then became worried when Sandy fainted for the poison had finally sunk in.

"Since all 3 of Aya's Pokemon have been defeated", said Koga, "I declare Cameron-san the winner!" and he approached both Sandy and Sandslash and fed them some revive potion. Sandy looked up at his smiling master and let out a soft, "Shrew?!"

"I'm so proud of you Sandy", smiled Cameron, "You've just proved to me that you don't have to be evolved to be a great Pokemon. I like you just the way you are."

"Shrew!" cried Sandy as he hugged his master.

"Don't you have something to give to our friend, sister?" Koga asked Aya.

"Oh yes", said Aya as she was about to approach Cameron. Just then, a cloud of smoke burst into the room. When the smoke disappeared, there was a ninja standing right in the center of the room.

"Reiko?" wondered Cameron for it looked like her body, but her head was covered with an even bigger mask with only her eyes showing. The ninja just said nothing. She threw some tiny bits of string at everyone trapping them in huge spider webs. But Koga and Aya managed to escape thanks to their swords.

"How dare you come in here and try to cause us all harm!" shouted Koga, "Prepare to feel the wrath of the Fuchsia ninjas!"

"Let me deal with her", said Aya, "After all, I am the one who'll be running this gym now."

"Very well", said Koga, "But be careful dear sister." Aya and the ninja started to have an awesome fight that could make Bruce Lee jealous. While the fight was going on, Sandy released all the other captives from their nets with his claws.

"Aren't you whipped yet?!" demanded a tired Aya. The ninja just silently knocked the sword out of Aya's hand and put her sword up to her sister's neck telling her to surrender.

"Venomoth, stun spore now!" shouted Koga as he released a huge purple moth that covered the ninja with a strange yellow powder. The ninja suddenly dropped her sword for she was completely paralyzed.

"Now we shall see who this scoundrel is", said Koga as he removed her mask. Everyone kind of expected who it was while Koga and Aya shouted, "REIKO?!!!"

"You two know her?" asked Cameron.

"Do we?!" stuttered Koga, "This is our long lost little sister!"

"The one who ran away six years ago just because I always seemed to be better than her at everything", said Aya.

"But like the fully evolved Venomoth that overtakes its lesser powerful Venonat sibling, I finally have defeated you dear sister", said Reiko.

"I see you still haven't stopped using those corny metaphors", said Aya.

"My metaphors are not corny!" shouted Reiko, "I use them to confuse and to strike fear into my enemies!" and she tried to attack Aya but couldn't for she was still stun spored.

"Well Little Miss Ninja", smiled Jenny with delight, "I finally got you where I want you!" and she snapped her cuffs on Reiko's wrists. "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say..."

"Wait a minute Officer", interrupted Koga, "We don't want to press charges. She's our sister and all she did was bust in here and try to sustain us to show us all that she's just as good a ninja as all of us."

"Yes, that's right", said Aya, "I have to admit she beat me fair and square just now."

"Arigato brother and sister", said a tear-filled Reiko.

"But I'm still going to have to arrest her", said Jenny, "She is a member of the evil Team Rocket and she has caused us quite a lot of trouble on our journey."

"Reiko!" said Koga shocked, "You mean you ran away so you can join an evil organization like Team Rocket?! Did we really treat you that badly that you'd go and do such a thing?!"

"Please let me explain dear brother", sobbed Reiko, "If that's all right Officer Jenny."

"Very well", sighed Jenny remembering some of her own family that was imprisoned.

START OF FLASHBACK

An eight year old Reiko was sparing with Aya. They were trying to knock each other off a wooden beam with long staffs. It looked like Reiko was about to win until Aya called out, "Look, it's the Good Year Blimp!" and she pointed up in the sky. Reiko looked up which gave Aya the advantage. She knocked her little sister off the beam and she landed face down in the mud.

"Hey, that's not fair!" whined Reiko.

"It's your dumb fault for letting your guard down", snickered Aya. "Maybe that fertile mud will make your brain grow bigger. HA HA HA HA!"

"I have seen enough", said Koga sternly. Reiko felt happy for she thought her big brother was going to scold and punish Aya for what she did to her. "Aya, I've decided that you will be second in command of the Fuchsia Gym."

"Arigato my brother", said Aya bowing to him, "I promise that I will not fail you. Unlike some sisters who like keeping their heads in the clouds and sometimes the mud."

"WHAT?!!!" shouted Reiko, "But she was the one that cheated!!!"

"She used cunning youngest sister", said Koga, "You should've kept your focus which you need to work on. And besides, Aya has seniority over you. She will run the gym after me. Now come Aya, it is dinner time."

"Right away brother dear!" smiled Aya as she made a mean face at Reiko while Koga's back was turned. Reiko sadly followed them until Koga stopped her.

"Get yourself cleaned up first", he demanded as he pointed to the bathhouse. "Soiled hands along with a soiled body will unpurify your food along with your body and soul." Reiko sadly walked over to the bathhouse.

* * * * * *

That night when Koga and Aya were asleep, Reiko snuck out of the door wearing a small backpack. "Like the Magikarp that cannot evolve without a kind and caring trainer, I'll never become a great ninja with uncaring teachers like them. Farewell siblings, I'm off to make a name for myself and I won't acknowledge either of you when I become an all powerful ninja!" Then she went to the nearby lake, fished out a tiny Tentacool who would later become Tentacruel, and left her Fuchsia home ready to seek her fortune unknowing it would be a misfortunate one.

* * * * * *

A few months later, Reiko caught a Krabby, who would later become Kingler, by a riverside near Pallet Town. She planned on going to the Pallet Pokemon center to rest up, but became disappointed when she found out there was no Pokemon center there. She was about to leave when all of a sudden, a huge electric wall surrounded the town sealing her in along with all the townspeople. Reiko quickly hid in the sewers and watched above as hordes of Rockets started seizing the citizens and bringing them to meet their new rulers.

The next few years were a nightmare for poor Reiko. She had to keep stealing to feed herself and her two Pokemon and she had to keep moving from hideout to hideout whenever the Rockets decided to tear down a building or house to build another factory. One day some Rocket thugs finally caught Reiko and were about to do some unpleasant things to her. But unfortunately for them, they had no idea that Reiko was a ninja and she was able to slam, kick, and stuff them into their own Pokeballs while their Pokemon ran away scared.

Suddenly, a huge limo zoomed up right next to her. A door opened and out popped Jessie wearing her royal attire. Jessie looked down at the 3 Pokeballs that were moaning in pain. Reiko looked at the very queen of this town in terror and was about to defend herself.

"Hey, take it easy kid", smiled Jessie in a sweet voice. "You've just defeated 3 of my toughest Rockets. I like your style. And I'd like to make you an offer that wouldn't be smart to refuse!"

"I'm listening", said Reiko in a cold, emotionless voice.

END OF FLASHBACK

"And so I joined Team Rocket and became Queen Jessie's favorite intern", said Reiko. "I didn't really have any other choice. If I was going to be stuck in that town forever, I may as well become an important person there. I understand if you both want to disown me forever", and she started sobbing.

Koga just went over and hugged his youngest sister lovingly. "No Reiko-san", he said sadly, "Mostly all of this was my fault too. I only used those harsh words so you would train yourself harder to become better and stronger. But I had no idea that it would all turn out this way."

"And please forgive me too Reiko-san", said Aya humbly, "I should've supported you and helped you with your training. But all I ever cared about was being the best. I never did think about how you'd feel."

"Can you please forgive the both of us?" they asked Reiko together.

Reiko sat there quietly for a minute with tears in her eyes and then whispered, "You're forgiven."

"Arigato, Reiko-san!" said both Koga and Aya as they hugged their long lost sister. Reiko wanted to hug them back too but she was still handcuffed to do so.

Cameron felt teary eyed seeing Reiko reunited with her family and hoping that he might be a part of it one day. Misty felt happy for her too, for she knew how it felt being mistreated by older siblings and being reunited with them with no longer any grudges.

"Say you'll rejoin our gym so we can be a happy family again", said Koga.

"I'm afraid I cannot", said Reiko sadly, "For I took a ninja's oath to serve Team Rocket. And you've always taught me that a true honorable ninja never breaks her oath."

"Yes, you are right", said Koga disappointedly, "Breaking a ninja's oath would bring great shame and dishonorment to you and your entire clan."

"Isn't there any kind of escape clause in this ninja's oath?" asked Cameron.

"The only way I can think of is if the entire organization of Team Rocket gets dismantled and disappears forever", said Koga.

"That is correct", said Aya, "If all the Rockets were suddenly put in jail, there'd be no more Team Rocket and you'd be free from serving them."

"Well Reiko", smiled Jenny, "If you agree to help us apprehend Jessie and James along with all the Rockets in Pallet Town, I'm sure I can convince the judge to let you off with a short jail sentence. What do you say?"

Reiko sat there quietly and was about to speak. Just then, two figures stumbled into the room covered with tar, feathers, mousetraps, bear-traps, and half their heads shaved.

"We could've waited just a few more hours for Reiko", whined James. "Just look at what's left of my gorgeous blue hair!"

"Your hair?!!" shouted Jessie, "Just look at mine! Whoever runs this gym is gonna be my personal shampoo slave for this!"

"And I believe I see them", said James, "And it looks like they've captured our all powerful intern too! Hee Hee Hee!"

"You two will pay for corrupting our poor little sister!" shouted Koga as he took out his sword.

"Reiko, you're this man's sister?" demanded Jessie.

"All ninjas from around the world are considered brothers and sisters", said Reiko, "I've never seen this man or this woman next to him before in my entire life!"

"Well I guess you won't mind if we take 'em prisoner then along with these rebels", smiled Jessie, "It's time to prepare for trouble!"

"And better make it double!" continued James.

"Reiko-san, why did you say that?" whispered both Koga and Aya while the two Rockets were saying their motto.

"I'm sorry my siblings", said Reiko, "But I cannot let them know who you're really are. For it would be very dangerous to all of us if they found out we're family!"

Jessie: "Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"  
James: "Surrender now or prepare to fight!"

"LICKIE!!!" shouted Lickitung substituting for Meowth.

"Lickitung, bring Reiko back to her rightful family", commanded Jessie. Lickitung grabbed Reiko's cuffs with its long tongue, dragged her back to Team Rocket and snapped the cuffs off of her for the tongue is supposed to be the strongest muscle in the body.

"You sit right here and relax Reiko", smiled Jessie, "Your Queen and King will handle this."

"I certainly hope not", whispered Reiko in Japanese.

"You give her back or I'll have to teach you a very hard lesson", shouted Aya making a scary ninja pose.

"Do you think a ninja who dresses in pink is gonna frighten me?" laughed Jessie, "Lickitung, wrap her up in a nice wet package!" Lickitung launched its tongue at Aya, but she quickly pulled out two large chopsticks and started curling up Lickitung's tongue like a long wet noodle. Once she dragged Lickitung over to her, she kicked the poor pink Pokemon across the room and right into Jessie's stomach knocking her down and covering her with Poke-drool!

"Yeccch!" groaned Jessie as she put Lickitung back into its ball.

"At least Lickie's drool removed some of the tar and feather stains", said James.

"Yes, I must thank them in some way", said Jessie, "And I know how. By making their miserable lives end! Come on James, let's double team!"

"You got it Jess!" smiled James as he released his Weezing while an angry Jessie released her Arbok.

"I remember those two Pokemon", said Aya, "And I still have nightmares from the last time I saw them."

"WEEZ!!!" "BOOOK!" moaned the two Pokemon who just had their feelings hurt.

"Aw, Weezing", said James, "Don't feel that way. Let's just show them how wonderfully nightmarish you can be. Poison gas attack now!"

"WEEZING!!!" said Weezing as it sprayed its green gas all over the place. But Koga's Venomoth was able to absorb all the poison into its body for it was completely made of poison.

"Good work Venomoth!" said Koga, "Now let's finish it off with psybeam!" Venomoth complied by shooting a psychic beam at Weezing knocking the poor ball out cold. Just as Venomoth was about to make a proud hum, Arbok snuck up behind Venomoth and bit down hard on it.

"Venomoth!" cried Koga as he saw the fang marks on his poor Venomoth's wings.

"HA HA HA HA!" laughed Jessie as she patted her Arbok's head. "No Pokemon I know has the stealth and cunning of my Arbok!"

"How about my Sandslash?!" shouted Aya as she released her prickly rodent once again. "Sandslash, poison sting now!" she commanded. Sandslash fired its needles at Arbok which didn't seem to poison the big snake at all.

"Even a poison trainer like you should know that poison attacks can't hurt other poison Pokemon", laughed Jessie. "Arbok, show up that pincushion with a glare attack!" Arbok made a scary face at Sandslash causing it to stand there paralyzed in fear. "Now bite its cute unprotected underbelly!" said Jessie.

"Oh no, Sandslash!" cried Aya as Arbok showed its fangs ready to pounce on the defenseless mouse. Sandy who couldn't bear to see a fellow rodent harmed jumped out of Cameron's arms and tackled Arbok onto the floor.

"No Sandy!" cried Cameron, "That Arbok's too big and dangerous for you to take on!" But Sandy didn't listen. He was too busy holding onto the back of Arbok's neck with his mouth. But Arbok managed to whack Sandy away with its tail causing the poor mouse to fly across the room.

"Sandy!" shouted Cameron as he leapt up in the air and caught his friend. But unfortunately, Cameron landed right on top of the paralyzed Sandslash. Cameron yelled as he fell onto the floor with some long quills stuck in his chest.

"Cameron, are you all right?" asked a worried Misty along with all his worried friends.

"I think I now know why you don't want to become a Sandslash Sandy", moaned Cameron as the poison started sinking in. "SHREW!!!" cried Sandy.

"Cameron-san!" whispered Reiko while trying to hold her emotions so Team Rocket wouldn't see her breakdown.

"Oh dear, what have we done?!" gasped both Jessie and James, "We actually managed to do away with one of those rebels", said James.

"And doesn't it feel great?!" laughed Jessie out loud while James laughed back too. Sandy's eyes suddenly turned red with fire and launched himself at both Jessie and James scratching them like crazy.

"Arbok!" shouted Jessie, "Send this rat to the afterlife with your poison sting attack!

"AARRBBOOOK!" shouted Arbok as it spit out some its own glowing needles at Sandy. But Sandy managed to dodge out of the way causing the needles to hit Jessie and James making them fall down too. Then Sandy started fury swiping Arbok causing it to faint as well.

"It looks like they might be joining me in the afterlife", said Cameron who was still poisoned and then totally blacked out.

* * * * * *

Cameron soon awoke and found himself lying on a cot, with some white bandages wrapped around his torso. He sat up and gazed at a beautiful face sitting in a chair right next to him. "Reiko?" he asked groggily.

"Yes it is me Cameron-san", smiled Reiko as she placed her hand on his shoulder leaning him back down. "Like the Metapod that patiently awaits to become a Butterfree. You must rest as well." And she kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you Reiko", smiled Cameron but then frowned, "You didn't take me back in Rocketville, did you?"

"No Cameron-san", said Reiko, "You're in my old bedroom in the Fuchsia gym. I removed all the quills from your chest and treated your wounds. Getting poisoned is very common here in this gym so we all had to learn how to treat each other whenever that happens."

"But where are Jessie and James?" asked Cameron.

"They're in another room", said Reiko, "We treated their wounds too but they're still unconscious. But truthfully, I was saving most of my prayers for you Cameron-san."

"Reiko", sighed Cameron as he sat up and looked into the red eyes of his beautiful nurse. Reiko looked lovingly into Cameron's green eyes as well. Just as they were about to do something, Seymour's voice called out. "Hey everyone, Cameron's awake!" All of his friends rushed in to check up on Cameron. Reiko quickly stood up and moved over to the side pretending that nothing was going on between the two of them.

"How is he sister?" asked Koga.

"I believe he will pull through", said Reiko, "He is strong like the skin of lava dwelling Rhydon."

"Are you feeling better Cameron?" asked Misty.

"Yes", said Stella, "That looked pretty painful, landing on a Sandslash like that."

"That's like having a witch doctor working his voodoo magic on you", said Bill.

"I think I'll survive", said Cameron.

"That's good to hear", said Brock, "And someone here is happy to hear that too." Brock stepped back and Sandy ran up to Cameron jumping onto his sore chest.

"Ooooh!" said Cameron in a little pain. Sandy just happily sat on his master's chest and started licking his face. "Oh Sandy", laughed Cameron as he hugged his Sandshrew. "Now I understand your feelings. If you became a Sandslash, you'd have all those poison quills too and we could never be this close again. I wouldn't want that. So please make us both happy and don't ever change on the outside and on the inside!"

"Sandshrew!" smiled Sandy as he gave Cameron another thankful slurp.

"I remember when my own Sandshrew became a Sandslash, I couldn't become close to him anymore", sighed Aya, "Except for a friendly hand and claw shake. You have a brave and noble Sandshrew Cameron-san and always stay friends with it. Also, I'd like to give you this."

Aya handed Cameron his shirt all sewn back up. But just as he was about to put it on, he found something pinned on the front. It was a badge shaped like a cracked pink heart. "A SoulBadge!" smiled Cameron.

"Yes Cameron-san", smiled Koga, "A SoulBadge for a boy with a kind soul. Reiko-san, you could learn a thing or two from this fine boy."

"I believe I already have", said Reiko winking at Cameron.

"I'm so glad you're okay Cameron and that you won yet another important badge", smiled Jenny, "But now it's time to take all the Rockets to the nearest jail."

"Even Reiko?" asked Cameron.

"I'm afraid so Cameron", said Jenny as she took out a pair of spare handcuffs and approached Reiko. "Now Reiko", she said calmly, "Like I said earlier, if you agree to help us apprehend the rest of the Rockets' I'll convince the judge to..."

"Let me off with a short jail sentence, I know!" sighed Reiko, "Sorry, but that cannot be right now!" and she quickly threw yet another smoke bomb into the room, kissed Cameron, and when the smoke was cleared, she was gone.

"I believe I taught her that smoke bomb move too well", said Koga sadly.

"I don't believe this!" shouted an angry Jenny, "I gotta stop her before she takes the Rocket King and Queen away with her!" and she quickly ran out of the room.

"So our sister's decided to stay with the evil ones", said Aya as she hugged her brother sadly.

"It looks like she left something for you", said Cameron as he found a note on his lap and handed it to Koga who read it out loud.

"Dear Siblings,

Though I truly enjoyed our reunion, but I still took an oath of loyalty to Team Rocket. Even if you send Jessie and James to jail, there are still over a hundred Rockets in Rocketville that I'm still obligated to serve. But do not worry, I believe that Team Rocket will be finished one day and I will be free and we will all be together once again. Until then, try not to be like the bacon that clogs your arteries black and follow the dark path I've been walking these past years.

Your youngest sibling, Reiko.

P.S. This is for you Cameron-san. XOXOXOXOX"

Everyone stood there silently thinking about the words Reiko just wrote. Just then a steamed Jenny burst into the room.

"Did she get away with Jessie and James?" Seymour asked her.

"Does this answer your question scienceman?!" grumbled Jenny as she pushed a button on her hat while a whistle popped out of it and blew out some raging steam.

* * * * * *

The next day, it was time for our heroes to say goodbye to Koga and Aya. "Cameron-san, I want to give you something that might help you on your quest", said Aya as she handed him a tiny little machine with a light on it. "This is an X-Speed device. Aim it at any of your Pokemon during a tough battle and it will become faster than lightning."

"Also take this", said Koga as he handed Cameron another device that looked like the first one. "This is an X-Defend device. If it looks like one of your Pokemon is about to encounter a tough opponent, aim it at your Pokemon and it will become heavily guarded."

"Thank you both", said Cameron. "I just wish that Reiko was still here with you."

"Yes, it is sad about what had happened to our sister", said Aya, "But she is a strong warrior and I believe in all the heavens that she will make it out okay in the end."

"And maybe someone like you can turn her around as well", said Koga winking at him. For he knew that his youngest sister seemed to have a thing for this kind blond-haired kid. Maybe he might even become a member of their Fuchsia gym family too.

"Arigato", said Cameron bowing to both of them as he and his friends walked away from the gym while waving goodbye to the siblings of Reiko.

* * * * * *

Meanwhile Jessie and James suddenly woke up. They found their torsos covered with bandages and they were looking up in a cloudy sky. "Have we actually made it to Heaven?" asked James.

"I hope not!" groaned Jessie, "I hate dressing in white. Send me down and dress me up in red hot leather!"

"No my queen, you and James-san are not deceased", said Reiko who was sitting across from them. Jessie and James got up and found themselves floating in their balloon.

"We're back in the sky?" asked James, "But what happened to the rebels?"

"They managed to escape while you were poisoned", said Reiko, "I had no time to apprehend them. The welfare of my two monarchs needed to come first."

"Well don't worry kid", smiled Jessie, "We'll get them another day. Team Rocket will not rest until those freedom loving rebels are gone from this Earth forever!"

"That's reassuring", said Reiko who was secretly hoping that all of Team Rocket would finally be put to rest permanently one day."

TO BE CONTINUED 


	18. So Safari

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 18

So Safari

Our heroes were now waiting in a line at the Safari Zone. A fun park where you can catch and take home all the wild Pokemon you want. "I've always wanted to visit the Safari Zone", said Stella, "I've heard they have all sorts of rare untamed Pokemon that'd be perfect for any circus."

"And we could use some more Pokemon if we want to take on Team Rocket and Mewtwo", said Jenny.

"I just hope that warden has gotten over his gun kick", said Brock.

"Gun kick?" asked Cameron.

"Yes", replied Misty, "The warden here's an old triggerhappy cowboy. He almost tried to shoot Ash in the head. Didn't you see that in your cartoon show?"

"Actually no", said Cameron, "They never aired the Safari Zone episode in the U.S. for some reason. I believe it was because the censors were afraid that kids might want to imitate that warden and carry guns around too."

"Wow", said Bill, "I never knew TV could corrupt young minds like that."

"Which is why someone invented V-chips", said Seymour. "To block out anything that might be dirty or violent so kids won't try and copy any of that."

"That sure would make my job easier", said Jenny for she and her family were constantly tired of all these dirty minded crooks carrying guns.

"I believe parents should just sit down with their kids in front of their favorite shows and point out what's wrong and that they shouldn't do that", said Brock, "That's how I did it with my siblings and they all turned out great."

"If only my parents had taught my sisters the same thing while they were watching Melrose Place", sighed Misty.

"Group No. 23, you may now enter the Safari Zone", called out a pretty western accented voice from a speaker above.

"That's us", said Jenny as she and the others stepped through the door. They all came inside a big room that looked like a sheriff's station and found no one in.

"I wonder where the warden is?" asked Seymour. Suddenly a huge lasso burst out of the darkness and snagged Seymour. Then a sexy figure jumped out, tied up Seymour and brought him close to her. It was a young lady with brown hair done in pigtails and she was wearing a cowboy hat and an old sheriff's suit.

"Howdy partner!" said the woman screaming into Seymour's face, "Catastrophe June's the name. You're awfully cute, you know that?"

"Uh, thank you", said a nervous tied up Seymour.

"I think I'll mark my brand on you and make you my man!" smiled June. Seymour was about to faint, until an annoyed Jenny pulled him away from the woman.

"Hold it Miss Catastrophe June", said Jenny as she held out her badge. "If you want to mark this man, you'll have to go through me first!"

"Oops, sorry officer", said June who was now calm. "And sorry to you too cutie pie!" she said as she turned to a traumatized Seymour and went over and untied him. "I just like to add a little Tex-Mex spice to this world of Pokemon rounding."

"No problem", stuttered Seymour as he pulled out his inhaler. And for the first time, Brock didn't go ga-ga for this particular kind of woman. "Uh, you wouldn't be related to the warden whom we met five years ago. Would you?" he asked.

"You mean my grampaw?" asked June who showed them a picture of the old man with his little Dratini.

"You're her grampaw, I mean grandpa?!" asked Misty.

"That's correct youngin", smiled June, "But unfortunately he passed away a couple of years ago." She now said sadly, "He went to that big old Safari Zone in the sky."

"We're sorry to hear that ma'am", said Brock.

But then she smiled again. "But that's all water under the bridge. Now I've taken over the family business and I'm the new warden of the Safari Zone."

"You don't carry any guns around, do you?" asked Brock nervously.

"Of course not", smiled June, "I'm more civilized than Grampaw." And she pulled out a mini crossbow and shot Cameron's hat off making it hit the wall. "Crossbows are more suited for a refined woman like me! Sorry, about that kid", said June as she went and got the hat, ruffled Cameron's hair and slammed it back on.

"No problem", said Cameron straightening out Ash's hat.

"Gee, you sure are a cute little buckaroo", smiled June as she pinched Cameron's cheeks very hard. "Have you come here to catch some cute little wild Safari Pokemon?"

"Yes we have", said Cameron whose cheeks were now numb, "If that's all right."

"Why sure it is", winked June, "Just as long as you pay $500 for you and your entire group."

"Guys", Cameron whispered to the group, "I don't have 500 bucks!"

"Sure you do", said Jenny, "Just check your Pokedex and push the green button with a dollar sign on it. Cameron complied and on Dexeena's screen, the number $23,523 appeared.

"I have that much?!" gasped Cameron, "But how did I and where do I get it?!"

"Every time you win a Pokemon battle, you earn currency", said Seymour, "Your Pokedex knows when you've won a battle and it automatically takes whatever currency from your opponent's Pokedex and transports it to yours."

"Wow, just like in my Gameboy!" smiled Cameron who just realized he had more money than he ever did in his lifetime.

"Just give your Pokedex to June and she'll subtract $500 from it and we can all have a rockin' fun time in the Safari Zone", said Misty.

"What'da'ya'mean by rock?!" grumbled June as she pointed her crossbow at Misty's forehead for this western girl obviously didn't go for rock and roll. Misty just stood there silently sweating.

* * * * * *

June had put Cameron's Pokedex into a credit card like machine, pushed a button, and handed it back to Cameron. When he checked his account, the number now said $23,023. Then June handed each member of the group, except for Bill, a box that contained a fishing pole, Pokemon food, rocks, and about 30 Pokeballs that were green with a letter S on each one of them.

"All right partners, here are the rules", said June as she pointed to a huge map on the wall. "Don't just memorize them, LEARN THEM!!! If you want to leave this fun place alive!" Everyone stood there silent with their ears wide open.

"Rule 1", said June, "Whenever you see a Pokemon in your sights, you can throw one of those special Safari Balls at it. You can either distract it buy throwing food, or weaken it by throwing rocks at it. But you may not use your own Pokemon to battle and weaken it. There are hidden sensors all over the Zone and if you even try to touch your Pokeballs, you'll get a nasty shock."

Cameron quickly frowned for he never had to experience electric shocks when playing in the Safari Zone on his Gameboy. Except that time he tried to play it with wet hands.

"Rule 2", continued June, "You can only spend one full hour in the Safari Zone. When your time is up I'll come by on my trusty jeep and round you all up."

"I just hope she doesn't lasso us while she's driving", thought Seymour nervously.

"And rule 3", said June, "You can explore any area in the Zone, except two places. First is this lake on the east. That's the home of Grampaw's pet Dragonair and her baby Dratini. They're off limits to the public."

"I remember Dragonair and Dratini", said Misty, "How are they doing these days?"

"Well, Dragonair still a little sad about losing Grampaw", said June, "But she's doing fine and little Dratini's doesn't remember him too much so its pretty happy as a Cloyster."

Cameron really wished he could've seen the Safari Zone episode so he could have the full picture of everything that happened with Ash and the Dratini.

"And the second place that's off limits is this forest on the northwest side of the Zone", said June as she pointed to the map. "That there's the Unruly Zone."

"Why do you call it the Unruly Zone?" asked Stella.

"Because that's where we keep our unruly Pokemon", said June in a not so cheery voice, "Pokemon that have been known to KILL people!" Everyone gulped when they heard that four-letter word.

"You mean you have mad killer Pokemon in your zone?!" gasped Misty.

"Relax little lady", smiled June, "They're kept behind a barbed fence. I'd never let any unruly Pokemon run around free in the Zone. I monitor the Zone all the time and if it looks like a Pokemon's about to give a customer trouble, I rush right on out there and apprehend them with my lasso, tie 'em up, and drag 'em off to the Unruly Zone."

"You mean the Pokemon right?" asked Jenny, "Not the customers."

June just smiled at Jenny's wisecrack and continued, "Other than that, go out there and have fun with your roundups!" and she pushed a button on her desk and huge doors on the left side of the wall opened revealing the wonders of the Safari Zone. Our heroes stepped outside and marveled at the beautiful green grass and blue lakes and all the Pokemon roaming around free.

"All right everyone", said Jenny, "Let's all separate and do our best to catch some really strong powerful Pokemon."

"This is going to be fun!" said Cameron excitedly wondering what his sixth and final Pokemon will be.

"Remember Cameron", said Brock, "Professor Oak said he doesn't have his Pokeball transporter with him so the one Pokemon you catch here will be your last for now."

"That's okay", said Cameron, "I already got a great team of five with me and whatever Pokemon I catch I'm sure will be a welcome member to my team." And off they went in different directions.

Cameron heard something moving from a nearby bush. He slowly approached it and out jumped a huge stag beetle with giant jaws on its head.

"Wow! A Pinsir!" smiled Cameron, "A bug type will be great on my team!" and he took out his first Safari Ball and threw it at the bug sucking it in. Cameron watched as the ball started to shake around, but then it burst to pieces and Pinsir ran away into a small forest. Cameron started to run after it but found Jenny in the forest instead holding a Safari Ball.

"I did it!" smiled Jenny, "I caught Pinsir!" Cameron frowned on the inside, but was happy on the outside that Jenny had another Pokemon to keep her Growlithe company. Then he heard a loud snoring noise. Cameron followed the noise and found a small little rhino sleeping peacefully.

"A Rhyhorn!" smiled Cameron, "And it's sleeping too. That should be an easy catch." Cameron took out another ball and threw it at Rhyhorn sucking it in as well. But Rhyhorn managed to escape from that ball as well and started to gallop away, right into Brock's path. Brock threw his ball at Rhyhorn and caught it.

"Yes!" shouted Brock, "I caught Rhyhorn!" and he walked off. Cameron frowned again. He had forgotten how frustrating it was having certain Safari Pokemon run away from you in the game. As Cameron continued walking, he hid behind a rock and saw a small two-headed bird.

"A Doduo!" said Cameron as he was about to bring out another ball, but then looked into his box. He took out a piece of Pokemon food and threw it at the Doduo hoping that would distract it. And sure enough it did. Both heads were arguing and fighting over the food trying to pull it away from each other.

"I don't why they're fighting over it", thought Cameron, "Whatever head eats it will end up in the same stomach." And he took out a ball and threw it at Doduo sucking it in as well. But Doduo broke out and ran away like the others. And it ran into the path of yet another friend. "Oh happy days!" said Seymour as he danced around happily, "I caught Doduo!"

"I'm so happy for you", whispered Cameron sarcastically.

* * * * * *

On the other side of the Zone, Team Rocket's balloon had landed right next to a huge lake. "There it is Reiko", smiled Jessie evily, "The famous lake that contains the legendary Dratini. The one Pokemon that's missing from our great Poke-collection."

"But like the toothfairy that replaces infant teeth with currency, I always thought Dratinti's were make believe", said Reiko.

"Oh no, they're real", said Jessie, "And I remember I saw a cute little Dratini pop its head out of the lake. That sure was a delight for me."

"But not for me if you remember!" grumbled James remembering the time he and Meowth went underwater in diving suits to find that Dratini. Jessie was so impressed when the Dratini popped its head out, she had stepped on the air pump causing both James and Meowth to almost die from lack of air.

"When are you gonna let that go?!" growled Jessie as she whacked James on the head with her fan, "I've mistreated you thousands of times in many ways! That was minor compared to when I forced you to marry that mad woman Jessiebell!"

"Maybe I should've stayed with Jessiebell instead", thought James, "She handles her whip more gentler than Jessie's fan."

"Well anyway", continued Jessie, "Dratinis have been known to have a large varieties of attacks and powers. If we can just catch it and control it, we'll have those rebels done in for sure! Isn't that right Reiko?!"

"You are correct my Queen", said Reiko trying to hide her feelings for Cameron, "Oh Cameron-san", thought Reiko, "Being a Rocket would've been much easier for me if you hadn't dropped from the sky."

"Okay James", said Jessie, "Release the vacuum!"

"Right away Jess!" smiled James as he pushed a button and a huge vacuum tube emerged from the balloon and started to suck the lake dry. Suddenly, something started to shoot out of the water. It was a long blue serpent with wings on her ears. She started to look angrily at the three humans who were trying to take away her watery home. "DRAAAAG!!!" she growled.

"I can't believe it!" said Jessie excitedly, "That cute little Dratini had evolved into a Dragonair!"

"But I don't think its gonna act so cute right now!" said James as he nervously looked into the Dragonair's angry eyes.

"But it will be thanks to this!" smiled Jessie as she took out a bazooka and shot a multi-colored collar out of it. The collar quickly clamped around Dragonair's neck and she suddenly floated there quietly.

"What did you do to it my Queen?" asked Reiko.

"I just snapped on a control collar", smiled Jessie, "Now this marvelous creature will do our bidding with no free will of its own. Watch." And she took out a tiny radio and spoke into it. "Dragonair", she commanded, "Fly around in a figure 8 form!" Dragonair nodded her emotionless head and started to fly around shaping her long body into a number 8.

"Now spell Queen Jessie!" she commanded. Dragonair then used her body to form those words in cursive.

"That looks quite painful", said Reiko.

"Don't worry about that", smiled Jessie, "Its too mesmerized to feel any kind of pain."

"Ooooooh! Let me try!" smiled James as he yanked the radio away from Jessie and spoke into it. "Dragonair!" he commanded, "Spell, The Suave and Mighty King James!" Dragonair suddenly twisted herself around but became a huge blue pretzel instead.

"That was too much for it to spell you twit!" grumbled Jessie as she whacked him with her fan and took the radio away from him. "Dragonair, straighten yourself out would you?" she asked. Dragonair complied and undid her pretzel form. Just then, a small arrow hit their balloon popping it and sending it plopping into what was left of the lake.

"Just what are you sidewinders doing to my poor little Dragonair?" shouted June who had just drove up in her jeep while holding her crossbow.

"So the Safari Zone has a new warden", said James, "And one with great legs too!"

"Why thank you", said June blushing as she lifted up her left boot. "But that still doesn't pardon you from what you're doing! Draggie, take care of them with hyper beam!" But Dragonair just floated there ignoring June's commands.

"Draggie, what's wrong?" asked June, "Those rustlers are gonna take you away if you don't attack back!"

"Sorry little miss sagebrush", said Jessie evily, "But Draggies now our noble steed! Draggie, zap her with thunder wave!" Draggie sent a thunder wave at June completely paralyzing her. Jessie and James were too busy laughing to notice a tiny baby Pokemon bobbing its head out of the water watching its mother attack their poor master.

Reiko suddenly saw someone way out in the distance. She took out her binoculars and saw who it was. "Cameron-san!" she gasped.

"What's wrong Reiko?" asked Jessie, "Have you spotted something or someone interesting?"

"I have!" said Reiko trying to think up something fast, "It could be one of the warden's deputies. I'd better go and apprehend him before he brings back help. If I can have your permission that is."

"But of course my dear", smiled Jessie, "Go off and cause all the misery and torment to your heart's desire!"

"Arigato my Queen", said Reiko as she did a huge back flip out of the balloon and rushed off.

"I have to warn Cameron-san!" said Reiko running as fast as she could. "If that Dragonair gets a hold of him, he's done for!"

* * * * * *

Meanwhile, Cameron was still having no luck at catching his sixth Pokemon and he only had 1 Safari Ball left. "I gotta make this last one count", he said with determination. Just then a huge bunny-like Pokemon with large eyes suddenly came his way. "A Wigglytuff", said Cameron really determined to catch this one. He threw a rock at Wigglytuff hoping that would weaken it, but Wigglytuff managed to whack it away with a doubleslap sending it right onto Cameron's head. As he lied there on the ground with a bump on his head, he could hear Stella's voice shout out, "All right! I caught Wigglytuff!"

A frustrated Cameron decided he should try fishing in the nearby lake hoping he could at least catch something powerless like a Magikarp. And sure enough, Cameron did catch something. It was a tiny black frog with cute hind legs, a long tail, and a swirl on its stomach. "A Poliwag!" smiled Cameron, "This should be easy to catch", and just as he was about to throw a ball at it, Poliwag squirted water into Cameron's face knocking him onto the ground. Poliwag then dove into the lake and swam to the other side where Misty was waiting there to catch it.

"Yes!" shouted Misty, "I caught Poliwag!!! Oh, hi Cameron!" said Misty as she saw Cameron on the other side and started waving to him. "Having fun?!"

"Oh, I'm having a ball", said Cameron with a huge false smile. "I'll have my sixth Pokemon soon enough!"

"Good luck", smiled Misty as she walked away. Cameron sighed as he sat down on a nearby rock to do some thinking. Then he saw a Rattata walking up to him.

"Well, this is my last chance", sighed Cameron as he was about to throw his last ball until the Rattata called out, "How many times do I have to tell you people that I'm nobody's Pokemon?!!"

"Oh, sorry Bill", said Cameron who now knew who it was. "It's just that I'm having the worst luck here while everyone else is stocking up on new Pokemon!"

"Welcome to the club", said Bill, "Can you believe I wasn't given any Safari Balls just because I'm now a Pokemon? I could at least have one so I can catch me something small like a Caterpie so I can play the superior being with it."

Cameron smiled a little and then noticed a huge forest that was blocked off with a barbed fence. "That must be the Unruly Zone June had talked about", said Cameron.

"The place where she keeps her killer Pokemon", said Bill fascinated. "I bet I could slip under this fence and study how vicious and deadly these types of Pokemon are."

"You're not actually gonna do that are you?!" gasped Cameron.

"Of course not", laughed Bill, "I didn't get my Pokemon researcher's degree by being stupid." Just then a long pink tail with a rattle slowly snuck out from under the fence. It grabbed Bill's tail and started dragging him in.

"What's going on?!" cried Bill, "Cameron, HELP!!" but then disappeared from under the fence and into the darkness.

"Oh no, BILL!" cried Cameron, "I've gotta do something! But I don't have any way to get through these barbed wires!"

"You got me!" called out a Japanese accented voice. Cameron turned around and found Reiko smiling at him while leaning on her sword like a cane.

"Reiko!" said Cameron nervously, "Bill's just been abducted by an unruly Pokemon! Can you help me save him?!"

"Anything for you Cameron-san", said Reiko as he used her sword to cut through the fence leaving it open for them to pass through.

"We'd better be careful Reiko", whispered Cameron, "There are supposed to be lots of killer Pokemon roaming around free in this forest and we won't be able to use our own Pokemon to battle them either."

"But like the Pinsir that loses its jaws for life but still relies on its front claws for slash attacks, I believe a skilled ninja like me will be able to handle any killer Pokemon", said Reiko proudly.

"Look over there", said Cameron as he dragged Reiko over to a huge tree and they hid behind it. They saw an Ekans, a Scyther, and a Ninetales gathered around a table shaped stone getting ready for a feast. Ninetales was breathing fire under the stone table, Ekans was shaking salt on the food, and Scyther was wearing a tall Japanese chef's hat and was sharpening up its huge claws ready to do some slicing and dicing. Cameron suddenly saw what the main course was. "BILL!!" he shouted.

Sure enough, it was Bill. They had him tied to the table with a plastic apple stuffed in his mouth. He was shaking and sweating nervously hoping that sweat would ruin the taste of diced Rattata. Just then, all three of the killer Pokemon heard Cameron shout out Bill's name. They looked up and saw the two teenage humans.

"Oops, my bad!" said Cameron realizing he just sealed his and Reiko's fates.

"And I thought I was the bad one here", said Reiko as she saw the three running, flying, and slithering up to them. Reiko tried to pull out her Pokeballs but got a nasty electric shock causing her to yelp. "What just happened?!" she demanded.

"Oh great", moaned Cameron, "June would have to put sensors in this part of the zone as well!"

Reiko took out her twin katanas and tried to defend herself against Scyther's sharp as steel claws. It was pretty tough for her for this huge mantis had the skills of a ninja as well.

Ninetales started shooting embers from his mouth ready to make Cameron feel the burn. Cameron quickly pulled out his water bottle and started squirting water at the huge fox making it back away for fiery Ninetales were truly weak against water. "H20", he smiled, "How I love those 3 little digits right now!" Just as Cameron thought he had Ninetales beat, he suddenly dropped his bottle for something had coiled itself around his torso. Cameron looked in fear into the scary eyes of Ekans while it tasted Cameron's face with its long forked tongue.

"Cameron-san!" cried Reiko who wanted to help him, but couldn't for she was still battling Scyther. That distraction gave Scyther the advantage to knock away Reiko's katanas and use one claw to pin her to a tree making her unable to move her arms.

Just as Ekans was about to constrict Cameron, Scyther was about to slash up Reiko, and Ninetales was about to roast the still restrained Bill. A loud trumpeting sound was heard. The three killer Pokemon suddenly shook in fear as they let go of their prey and ran off into a darker part of the forest.

"Are you all right Cameron-san?" asked Reiko.

"I'm fine", said Cameron as he went over and untied Bill, "How about you Bill?" he asked.

Bill finally managed to bite through the huge apple and replied, "I'm okay, except that I'll now have the taste of plastic apple in my gums and I hate apples! Even artificial ones!"

"What do you suppose made those three scoundrels run off like that?" asked Reiko. And suddenly she found out what it was. A new kind of Pokemon Cameron had never seen before had charged out of the darkness. It looked like a small elephant with sharp tusks and skin that looked like rubber.

"What is that thing?!" asked Cameron as he aimed his Pokedex at it.

"DONPHAN, the armor Pokemon", replied Dexeena, "Since this is a newly discovered Pokemon, I cannot give you any other data on it. I hope we can still be friends though."

"Wow!" said Cameron amazed, "I wonder if this is one of the new Pokemon that'll appear in those Gold and Silver games I keep hearing about?"

Reiko had no idea what Cameron had said, but got herself ready to attack as the Donphan slowly walked over to them wondering what it was gonna do.

"Maybe I can frighten it away with my leer attack", said Bill as he leapt in front of Donphan and pulled his eyelids back trying to make a scary face.

"HA!" laughed Reiko, "There's no way that kind of attack will frighten away a big Pokemon like that." But she was wrong. Donphan stood on its hind legs in fear and started trumpeting a loud, "PPHHHAAAAANNN!" It then galloped away making loud stomping noises causing Cameron, Reiko, and Bill to fall down. "Then again, what do I know about the fears of Pokemon?" said Reiko.

"Never underestimate Bill power!" smiled Bill proudly.

"I always thought the stories about elephants being scared of mice were just myths" thought Cameron but then remembered that this was a Donphan and a Rattata. They watched as Donphan ran across something black and then stopped. "PPPHHHAAAANNNN!" it trumpeted as it looked like it was sinking in that black stuff.

"I must've scared it into a tar pit", said Bill.

"Good", said Reiko, "That gives us a chance to escape. Come on Cameron-san." And she tried to drag Cameron away but he just stood there.

"We just can't leave that poor Donphan in that sticky situation", said Cameron, "We shouldn't've been in the Unruly Zone to begin with and I can't let it pay for my disobedience."

"But that's supposed to be a killer Pokemon!" said Reiko, "What if we save it and it starts attacking us?"

"I don't think it tried to attack us", said Cameron, "I believe it was just wanted to take a closer look at us."

"And I was the one that frightened the poor thing away", said Bill, "We should help it, after all it did save us from those three hungry barbarians."

"Very well", sighed Reiko as she, Cameron, and Bill ran over to the pit where all they could see were Donphan's trunk. Cameron grabbed onto the trunk while Reiko grabbed onto Cameron while Bill grabbed onto Reiko's pants leg trying to pull Donphan out of the pit. But the tar was too strong and the more they pulled, the deeper Donphan started to sink.

"My ninja strength seems to be failing me!" said Reiko, "I must remember to punish myself for slacking."

"Maybe strength isn't what we need for this", said Cameron as he looked at his Pokebelt. He quickly touched a Pokeball and got a huge electric shock. But no matter how painful it seemed, he wouldn't let go of his Pokeball. He managed to yank it off his belt and release a Pokemon. Then the shocking stopped while Cameron fell to his knees.

"Cameron-san! Are you all right?!" asked a worried Reiko. "Why did you do that to yourself? That seemed extremely painful!"

"It was", said Cameron in deep breaths, "But there are some things you just gotta do in the name of Pokedom.

"I agree", said Bill thankful that he and Reiko went into these dangerous woods to rescue him. They all looked at the Pokemon that Cameron had released. It was Slowking.

"Slowie", said Cameron, "I need you to use your psychic powers to save that sinking Pokemon over there. Can you help it?"

"Slow", said Slowie in a big dopey smile as he started glowing a bright color and Donphan was immediately lifted out of the pit and onto the safe green grass. It seemed okay except that it was covered from head to toe with gooey black tar.

"Thank you Slowie", said Cameron, "Can you also wash it clean?" Slowie squirted water all over Donphan until it was as clean as a shiny rubber tire. Then Donphan slowly walked over to Cameron and wrapped its trunk around his waist.

"Uh oh", said Reiko as she was about to pull out her sword until Bill called out, "Wait Reiko, I don't think Donphan's going to hurt Cameron." She looked up and smiled as Donphan was hugging Cameron gratefully while little pink hearts floated all around them.

"Your very welcome", smiled Cameron as he patted Donphan's rubbery head. "You don't seem like an unruly killer Pokemon at all. In fact, I don't even know why June put you in this place. But would you like to join my group and be with other friendly Pokemon?"

"Phan!" trumpeted Donphan while smiling. Cameron smiled as he took out his last Safari Ball and sucked the huge pachyderm in. "All right!" he shouted proudly, "I now have Donphan. My six Pokemon team is finally complete!"  
"Congratulations Cameron." said Bill. "I'd congratulate your Donphan too but it might run away again if I did that."

"You definitely earned it Cameron-san", smiled Reiko as she went over and kissed Cameron on the cheek again while he turned a bright red.

"Thank you Reiko." said Cameron in a goofy smile. "And don't worry. I won't tell Jessie and James what you did for me and Bill."

"Oh no, I forgot!" gasped Reiko, "Jessie and James have just captured and taken control of a Dragonair and they're planning on using it against you and your friends! You have to find your comrades and get them all out of here fast!"

"Will you be coming with us?" asked Cameron.

"No, I'd better stay here and patch up the fence I just tore apart", said Reiko, "Now go! Before those Rockets find you!" and she karate chopped the stone table in two telling him to obey her.

"Uh, okay!" said Cameron in a shocked voice, "Thank you for warning us!" and he gave Reiko a quick kiss on her cheek and he and Bill ran out of the Unruly Zone. Reiko just stood there in a wonderful trance at what Cameron just did to her. Just as the same Scyther was about to sneak up behind her. But luckily, Reiko was able to turn around and happily kick it back into the darkness "Ah, the magic of love!" she sighed as she skipped out of the zone, took out her katanas and used them as knitting needles to patch up the barbed wire fence.

* * * * * *

Meanwhile, our heroes had gathered at the same spot where they all separated from and were telling each other what they caught. "All I caught was a Poliwag", said Misty.

"I caught me a Wigglytuff and a Tauros", said Stella.

"I got a Doduo and a Paras", said Seymour happily.

"I got a rock!" said a discouraged Brock. Everyone looked at him funny but then Brock just smiled and said, "Just kidding! I got me a Rhyhorn!" and everyone laughed.

"I got me a Pinsir, a Cubone, a Nidorino, and a Nidorina", smiled Jenny, "But I might have to get the Nido's fixed if they want to live together with me."

Just then Cameron and Bill ran up to the group completely out of breath. "Hey guys", smiled Misty, "What's wrong. Been chased by a tiny little Dratini?"

"It's much worse than that!" panted Cameron, "We've gotta get out of the Zone fast!"

"But we still got ten minutes left here", said Seymour. "There's still plenty of time to catch some more Pokemon."

"Yes, please stay!" called out Jessie's voice. "We would love to do some more catching."

"And all of you look like fine catches to us", said James as a smoke bomb landed and when it cleared. Jessie and James were now standing in front of them saying their motto as usual.

Jessie: "Team Rocket blasting off at the speed of light!"  
James: "Surrender now or prepare to fight!"

"DRAGONAIR!" said Draggie who suddenly plopped down right behind Jessie and James. Cameron took out his Pokedex again and aimed it at the serpent.

"DRAGONAIR, the dragon Pokemon. The evolved form of Dratini", replied Dexeena. "A mystical Pokemon that exudes a gentle aura. Has the ability to change climate conditions."

"Well well", smiled Jessie, "We originally came here to catch this Dragonair."

"But we'd have no idea that we'd be catching some rebels as well", continued James.

"Hey, what are you guys doing with the Safari Zone's Dragonair?!" demanded Brock.

"With the help of this radio in my hand at that cute but uncomfortable collar around Draggie's neck. This beast has become our loyal servant. And we'll show you'll just how loyal it is. Draggie! Use thunder wave on them like you did to your former master!"

"DRAAGGG!" shouted Draggie as she released her thunder wave on our heroes making them completely paralyzed so they couldn't run away or fight back.

"Nice work Draggie!" smiled James, "Now we'll be able to take them back to Rocketville with no resistance at all. And I truly hate resistance. It's a hard word to spell!"

"I gotta do something!" thought Cameron as he tried to move but couldn't. He tried hard and he was able to put one finger up to a certain green Safari Ball on his belt. And the electric sensors didn't shock him for he was already thunder waved. Out popped Donphan ready to defend his new master.

"What kind of Pokemon is that?" asked Jessie.

"I think I saw something like that after I came back drunk from the Rocketville bar one time", said James, "Only it was pink."

"Well whatever it is, it's definitely missing from our collection!" smiled Jessie, "Draggie, thunder wave that Pokemon as well!" Draggie sent out yet another thunder wave attack, but it didn't effect Donphan one bit.

"It must be its rubber skin that makes Donphan immune to electric attacks", smiled Cameron, "Okay Donphan, use your uh, eh, well, Gee, I don't know what attacks you have."

But Donphan knew. It quickly spun around and changed itself into a huge rubber tire. It then sped at high speed getting ready to squish Draggie flat. But Draggie quickly flew up in the air out of Donphan's path and it ran over Jessie instead. "Wow", said Cameron, "Donphan would be useful if a 4x4 ever has a flat tire."

"Jessie, speak to me" cried James as he peeled Jessie off the grass like a sticker in an album. "This is one way to keep my trim figure!" said Jessie in a flat voice.

James quickly rolled up Jessie like a scroll and watched as the huge rubber tire kept leaping up and slamming into Draggie countless times. James found the radio that Jessie had dropped before she got squashed and picked it up. "Come on Draggie!" said James, "Don't let that third wheel defeat you. Strike back with your slam attack!"

"DRAAAGGGG!" shouted Draggie as she slammed her strong tail right onto Donphan's head causing it to fall on its back knocked out with a huge rubber bump on its head.

"DONPHAN!" cried Cameron.

"So much for your last minute guest rescuer!" laughed James. But then another guest rescuer suddenly leapt into the picture. It was a smaller version of a Dragonair. It looked at the huge serpent and went, "Dratini?"

"Oooooh, a Dragonair and a little Dratini as well!" smiled James.

"You mean my Dragonair and Dratini you varmint!" called out a voice. It was June. She was now free from the thunder wave effects and she had her crossbow ready with an extremely itchy trigger finger.

"Oh, hi there", said James, "I see you've brought me yet another rare Pokemon as a gift. And I know just how to thank you too. Draggie, blow this cowchick away with your hyper beam!"

Just as Draggie was about to take a deep breath, Dratini flew up in front of her shouting, "Dratini, tini, tini, tini!" with tears in its eyes. Draggie suddenly stopped for she knew who this Dratini was. It was Draggie's baby. "DRAGONAIR!" she cried as she gushed out tears causing the collar around her neck to short circuit and crumble off.

"What do you think you're doing?!" demanded James through the radio. "We're giving you the opportunity to become a mean lean death machine and you're throwing it all away over parenthood! I demand you to attack something!" Then both Dratini and Dragonair looked fire-eyed at James.

"Uh, you're free from that collar now!" said James nervously, "So you don't have to attack if you don't want to!" and he ran away carrying the flattened Jessie with him.

"How about showing us that beautiful hyper beam of yours Draggie?" smiled June. Draggie smiled as she charged herself up and let loose a powerful beam blasting it at Jessie and James sending them flying into the sky.

"Look's like Team Rocket's blasting off again!" they shouted as they flew up higher and higher until they landed safely into the floating balloon that Reiko had just repaired.

"My Queen", said Reiko as she saw the flattened Jessie, "What has happened to you?!"

"She's feeling a little tired right now", said James, "Do we have an air pump on this balloon somewhere?"

"Just this one", said Reiko pointing to an air tank, "But I don't think it would be wise to use this one."

"But remember Reiko", said James as he took it and put the tube into Jessie's mouth. "I'm older than you so I know what's wise and what's not." And he turned the valve pumping air into Jessie making her unflat. But unfortunately, James put too much air and Jessie started blowing up like a blimp, even bigger than the balloon they were riding in. She quickly grabbed onto one of the ropes so she wouldn't float away.

"James you idiot!" she shouted in a squeaky voice, "You've filled me up with helium! I look like something that came from Macy's!!!"

"Oh dear", said James nervously and then looked at the huge Meowth shaped balloon above and the blown up Jessie behind him. "This balloon team is missing one member!" said James as he started pumping himself up with helium and floated right next to Jessie with a big smile. "Don't I come up with great ideas Jess?" he said in a squeaky voice also. Jessie just punched him but got her fist caught for it went deep down into James's face.

"Like the older man who thinks he has wisdom in him", sighed Reiko, "He realizes he's just a windbag with nothing but hot air in his head."

* * * * * *

June had just refilled the lake and smiled as she watched Draggie and her baby slither back into their watery home. Then she saw our heroes watching Cameron put a large bandage on Donphan's head. "There you go Donnie", he smiled. "I'll always be there for you like you were for me."

"Phan!" smiled Donnie as he hugged Cameron extremely tight with his trunk.

"Can you love me a little less sometimes?" asked a blue-colored Cameron. Donnie complied and loosened his grip.

"That sure is a cool Donphan you now own Cameron", said Misty.

"I've never seen a Pokemon quite like it", said Brock.

"I've heard about Donphans from my old colleagues", said Seymour, "But I'd never thought I'd see one myself."

"I'd bet a Donphan would be a great addition to my circus", said Stella imagining herself putting her head under a Donphan's huge foot and then squashing it flat. Stella immediately popped her thought bubble and shook some sense into her head.

"I recognize that Pokemon", said June in a serious voice. "It started a ruckus all over the zone the other day! I had to capture it and take it to the Unruly Zone. You didn't go in there after I specifically ordered you not to, did you?!" she asked as she pointed her crossbow up to Cameron's head.

"I had to!" said Cameron nervously, "Bill was in trouble and I had to save him."

"He's right", said Bill as he jumped in front of June. "Then that Donphan came and saved us all from a bunch of savage killer Pokemon. I don't think he's really a killer at all."

June slowly approached Donnie and he looked at June with warm friendly eyes. She smiled as she stroked Donnie's trunk. "I guess you're a pretty decent Pokemon after all", she said, "But I still don't know why you caused all that confusion in the Rattata village."

"I think I know why", said Cameron, "Donnie seems to have a fear of Rattata's. He only caused that confusion because he was scared."

"Is that so?" asked June.

"And I'll prove it", said Bill as he jumped in front of Donnie and said, "How do you do Donnie?"

"PPPHHHAAANNNN!" cried Donnie as he jumped into Cameron's arms causing him to fall down.

"Hey, take it easy big guy", said Bill as he handed Donnie a peanut. Donnie slowly took it from Bill and munched on it happily. He then picked up Bill and started hugging him tightly.

"Okay, I'm glad you've gotten over your fear of me!" said Bill who was turning from purple to blue.

"I guess you were right", smiled June, "Okie dokie Cameron. Donphan is yours to keep."

"Thank you", said Cameron happily gasping for air for Donnie was still sitting on him. Donnie smiled as he kissed his new master on the cheek with his trunk while everyone laughed.

TO BE CONTINUED

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Well, Cameron finally has a six Pokemon team. But will this good team be able to stand up against the bad Rocket team? Stay tuned for the next chapter to find out! ;) 


	19. Poke-Karaoke

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 19

Poke-Karaoke

Our heroes were driving their RV through an open countryside. Everyone just loved the RV that was given to them by the not-so-bad Kingston Silph. Jenny was driving while the others were doing fun stuff in great luxury. Jenny looked at the control panel and noticed that the power level was almost low.

"That's odd", she said, "It seemed to be very high this morning. I wonder what's causing the power to suddenly drop?"

Cameron was using the microwave to pop some popcorn for him and Sandy, Misty was using her hot comb to get her one pigtail just perfect, Brock and Stella were watching the semi-blockbuster hit, Pokemon in Love, on their big screen TV. Bill was mixing a variety of cheeses and crackers in a food processor, and Seymour was in the kitchen trying to make a romantic lunch for his beloved Jenny. Suddenly, the motor stopped and all the power went out in the RV making everything dark.

"Hey, what happened?" asked Cameron.

"I believe this is what I call a blackout", said Seymour.

"No, this can't be happening!" wailed Misty. "I haven't completed fixing up my hair! Now I'll look hideous!"

"Relax Misty", said Bill, "I don't think anyone will be looking at you in this darkness."

"And we were just about to watch the juiciest part of the movie too!" whined Stella.

"Maybe we can make our own juicy movie", said Brock, "And this darkness is the perfect mood for it!"

"All right!" called out an angry Jenny, "Which one of you has wasted all the power?! Somebody answer me or I'll.. sniff, sniff. Hey, is that enchiladas stuffed with wild cherries I smell?"

"Uh, yes it is", said Seymour nervously, "It is our all time favorite food. Isn't it?"

"Yes, that's it Seymour", whispered Misty, "Put Jenny in a good mood so you can take all the blame."

"Well, it was sweet of you to make my favorite meal for me", said Jenny, "But next time, don't use so much power when making it in an RV. Okay my special scientist?" and she kissed him.

Seymour started to blush incredibly making his red face light up the room, but then said, "Wait a minute. I don't think I felt your kiss."

"But I did!" moaned Misty as she started to wipe her lips clean.

"Let's all sit down to a nice cherry enchilada lunch and then we'll try to fix the power", said Jenny now happy. Everyone found the table and sat down. Most of them were thankful that they didn't have to look at the gross combination of food Seymour made. But then Seymour lit some candles to make it romantic for him and Jenny while everyone secretly groaned now that they had to look at what they're eating.

* * * * * *

After everyone, except Seymour and Jenny, were over their queasiness, they all stepped out of the RV to get it fixed. Jenny popped open the hood and took out some jumper cables. "If only a passing car would come by here, we can ask the driver to pull over and help us charge up our RV", said Jenny.

Everyone looked down the road and found no cars coming at all. "Traffic jams never come when you really need them", sighed Stella.

"Wait a minute", said Cameron, "We don't need another car. We got our own power source right here!" and he released Electabuzz. "Buzz, we need some of your power to charge up our RV", said Cameron, "Can you spare some please?"

"BUZZ, EL BUZZ!" said Buzz while saluting which meant yes. Jenny hooked the cables to Buzz's antennas and hooked them to the engine. "Okay Buzz", said Jenny, "Let loose your juice!"

"BUUUUZZZZZ!" said Buzz as he let his electricity flow through the cables and into the engine. "I think it's working!" smiled Jenny as she watched the lights on the engine starting to charge up. Just then, sparks started to fly out of the engine while water burst out of the radiator like a fountain and the headlights started to burst.

"That's enough Buzz!" shouted Cameron, "You're giving it too much power! Stop please! That's an order!" But Buzz wasn't listening for he was too busy concentrating on his power trip. Nuts and bolts started popping out of the engine while the windshield wipers were dancing like crazy.

"We gotta do something!" cried Seymour, "Before Buzz blows up the RV along with himself!"

"V.P., I choose you!" shouted Cameron as he released his Vileplume. "Quick V.P." shouted Cameron. "Put Buzz to sleep before it's too late!"

"VILE!" shouted V.P. as it saw the damage its teammate was doing. It quickly covered Buzz with sleep powder making him lie down and start snoozing while the electric power ceased.

"That was a brilliant idea Electric boy", grumbled Misty. "And why don't you have your Donphan just sit on top of the RV too so he can crush us to death?!"

"I'm sorry everyone", sighed Cameron as he pulled the sleeping Buzz back into his ball.

"Hey, don't feel bad Cameron", said Brock, "At least you tried to think of something."

"Now the next thing we have to think about is where to get ourselves another vehicle", said Jenny. "This thing has gone to RV Heaven."

"Hey, look at this!" said Cameron as he saw a flyer stuck to a tree.

"Pokemon Karaoke contest happening today at the Crimson Cafe in Crimson City. If your Pokemon is a great singer or can play a cool instrument, please enter and let it perform. First prize is a brand new RV."

"So are you saying that we should let one of our Pokemon get on stage and do a musical number hoping that one will be the winner?" asked Misty.

"That's a great idea!" smiled Stella with stars in her eyes. "I get to be part of the theater once again!"

"Let's each enter one Pokemon", said Brock, "That way we'll have a seven way chance of winning."

"I was quite the karaoke singer during my younger days", said Bill. "I think I'll enter myself."

"Perhaps the world's only singing Rattata would make you the winner", said Seymour.

"I think I'll enter my Seadra", said Misty, "I've heard they know the song of the sirens."

"I wonder which Pokemon should I enter?" said Cameron. "Sandy, can you carry a good tune?"

"Shrew, Shrew Sandshrew, SHHHHRRRREEEEWWWW!!!" Sandy sang out loud while everyone covered their ears.

"Uh, that was a nice try Sandy", said an almost deaf Cameron, "But I bet if you keep practicing for a while, you'll be even better."

"Shrew!" said Sandy agreeing with Cameron for he didn't like the sound of his Sandshrew singing either.

Just then, Cameron heard some really cool trumpet playing from one of his Pokeballs. He took the green one and out popped Donphan happily trumpeting a wonderful tune. "Why Donnie", smiled Cameron, "That was beautiful. You should play in a high school marching band!"

"Phan!" said Donnie while blushing and curling up his trunk.

"Or better yet, you could enter him in the Karaoke contest", said Brock.

"You think I should?" asked Cameron.

"Yes, you should", said Seymour who went into poem mode.

"Oh, there's nothing like the sound of a Donphan's nose.  
No other sound on Earth can ever come close.  
With a toot and a trumpet and that's strong and loud.  
You've got a Pokemon that'll make the music world proud.  
So Cameron, enter your Donphan and then you'll realize,  
With him on your side, you're sure to win the prize!"

"Okay Seymour, you talked, er, poetried me into it", smiled Cameron for he couldn't say no to a guy who just made a strange poem about him and his Pokemon.

"PHHAAAANNN!" trumpeted an eager Donnie.

* * * * * *

In another part of the forest, we see Team Rocket's balloon totally destroyed and hanging from a tall tree while Team Rocket were on the ground with three human shaped holes in the grass for that was where they've landed. "Of all the stupid things you ever done, you've just had to push yourself to the limit!" screamed Jessie as she was strangling James.

"Hey, I thought taking a shortcut through the world's tallest cactus farm was a good idea", said James gasping for breath while Jessie was strangling him even harder.

"Uh, my Queen", said Reiko stepping between them, "I really hate to interrupt your stress relieving, but shouldn't we try to fix our balloon so we can get back into the sky?"

"Yes, you're right", said Jessie as she dropped James onto the ground and straightened out her gloves and then looked at the balloon. "But you're also wrong. That balloon is totally 100% damaged for us to fix. I'll just phone Meowth and have him send us another balloon." And she took out her portable vidphone and dialed the number to the Rocketville Palace.

"Hello Meowth", said Jessie but got no response and no picture. "Meowth, why aren't you answering me?! Are you even there?! ANSWER ME NOW!!!"

"Please calm down my Queen", said Reiko, "Maybe Meowth's on the litter box right now and he can't come to the phone."

* * * * * *

But what they didn't know was that Meowth was too busy to answer the phone. In fact, he had the receiver off the hook. He was too busy throwing the wildest Pokemon party ever. He had released all the Rocket owned Pokemon from their balls and they were all shouting, singing, dancing, eating, drinking, and making a huge mess in the throne room. Meowth was wearing a pair of white briefs and was dancing around in his litter box playing a huge powerful electric guitar.

"Ah, this is the life", shouted Meowth, "I should get Jessie and James out of the palace more often!" and he left his box and jumped into an indoor swimming pool filled with milk.

* * * * * *

"I'm gonna skin that cat if we ever do get back to the palace!" grumbled Jessie as she cracked the phone in two with her bare hand.

"I guess this means we'll have to go on foot after those rebels", whined James, "Why did I have to bring my new designer shoes with me?! They'll be ruined!"

Reiko smiled on the inside for she now had hopes that they'd never be able to catch Cameron while on foot. "Wait a minute, what's that?" asked Jessie as she saw a flyer on one of the trees. She ripped it off and read it out loud. "Pokemon Karaoke contest happening today at the Crimson Cafe in Crimson City. If your Pokemon is a great singer or can play a cool instrument, please enter and let it perform. First prize is a brand new RV."

"James", smiled Jessie, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"I think so Jess", said James as he took the flyer and made it into a paper hat and put it on his head. "Aren't I loaded with talent?" he said proudly. An annoyed Jessie just whacked James with her fan causing the hat to go flat along with his head.

"I believe her royal highness is suggesting that we enter this Karaoke contest and try to win that RV so we can have a vehicle again", said Reiko emotionlessly.

"That is correct my smart little ninja", smiled Jessie. "And I've got just the Pokemon to enter. A Pokemon who can pitch out really big notes with its world's biggest tongue!" and she released her Lickitung. "Go on Lickie", smiled Jessie, "Let loose your golden voice"

"LICCCKKKIIIIEEEE!!!!" screeched Lickitung while its tongue started curling up in horrible knots while Team Rocket fell to the floor all curled up in knots too cringing at the horrible sound.

"I think your Lickitung's a little flat", cried James.

"No, you're the one who'll be flat if you insult my poor Lickitung like that again!" growled Jessie as she got up and took a can of gold paint out from the balloon. "Here Lickie", smiled Jessie, "Stick your tongue into this gold paint, but don't swallow it."

"Lickie!" said Lickitung as it dipped its tongue into the gold paint and then brought it out all pretty and golden. "There we go", smiled Jessie, "Now try singing with that golden tongue of yours."

"Lick, lick, lickie, lick, lick, lick, lick, lick!" sang Lickitung singing a song from the opera Carmen in its Lickitung language. "It's so beautiful!" cried James with tears in his eyes.

"Very wise my Queen", said Reiko.

"Thank you", smiled Jessie as she hugged Lickitung, "You'll knock 'em dead for sure, isn't that right Lickie!"

"Lickie!" shouted Lickitung as it gave Jessie a grateful slurp knocking her down and getting gold paint on her face.

"Hey Jessie", asked James, "Since when did you get gold teeth?"

* * * * * *

Our heroes were now in the Crimson Cafe sitting at a table right at the very front of the stage. There were almost a hundred people there seated at tables. "It looks like everyone wants to win an RV here", said Cameron while holding Sandy in his lap.

"Let's just hope at least one of our Pokemon will be able to win", said Jenny.

"Which one of your Pokemon will you be entering Jen?" asked Seymour.

"You'll see", Jenny smiled as she winked at Seymour.

Just then, two people dressed in 70's style clothes suddenly stepped onto the stage. One was a girl with long blonde hair with flowers in it and the other was a guy with blue hair and a beard and wearing sunglasses. "Hello all you groovy people out there", said the girl in a mellow voice.

"Welcome to the Pokemon Karaoke contest at the Crimson Cafe all you hip dudes", said the guy whose voice sounded like a frog. Cameron wondered where he heard that voice before.

"As you swingers have already heard", said the girl, "The winner of this way out contest will win a brand new RV" and the curtain opened and revealed the object the girl was talking about. The RV looked almost like the one Kingston gave our heroes, only it was bigger and shinier.

"Our first swinging act will be a group of singing Pidgeys", said the guy looking at the sheet that all the contestants had signed. A man at one of the tables stood up and released six Pokeballs. Out came six Pidgeys that flew up on stage and started chirping the tune of Rockin' Robins.

Our heroes watched as different Pokemon sang and performed for them in a lot of weird but interesting ways. They saw a Seel blowing four horns of different lengths playing When the Saints Come Marcing In. They saw a Dugtrio with each of its three heads wearing bow ties and black wigs and singing like The 3 Tenors in a loud varieties of Trio Trio Trios. They even saw a Hitmonchan and a Hitmonlee doing their version of the musical Stomp buy kicking and punching a bunch of pots, pans, and metal cans around.

"Wasn't that something?" said the guy, "Next we have a Cubone that's gonna play for you a song from his head."

"That's me", said Jenny as she released her Cubone. "All right Cubone", smiled Jenny, "Just play like you normally do for me."

"Cubone", said Cubone as it walked up on stage.

"I didn't now you had a musical Cubone", said Seymour.

"I didn't know until last night", smiled Jenny, "I was outside the RV while you were all asleep taking care and getting to know all of my new Pokemon. That's when Cubone started playing music for me."

"Does it sing or play a musical instrument?" asked Cameron.

"You'll see", winked Jenny. Then Cubone took out two small bones and started beating its skull shaped helmet making a cool melody of click-  
clacking sounds.

"That's so beautiful Jen", smiled Seymour.

"But doesn't that hurt Cubone?" asked Cameron.

"At first I thought it did", said Jenny, "But when I tried to take the bones away from Cubone. It started crying. So I gave them back to it and it started to happily make music again."

"I guess music can take away your misery and pain sometimes", said Cameron as he watched Cubone beat its head even harder while still looking happy.

Next, Brock released his Graveler and Onix on stage. Onix laid itself flat on the stage while Graveler started to roll around on its rocky bumpy coils creating a whole new neat sound.

"Wow, that's amazing Brock!" said Stella. "You've given a new meaning to the words rock and roll!"

"Thanks Babe", said Brock blushing.

Next, Stella's Persian was on stage sitting on a huge fence meowing a moonlight song while holding a bottle of milk.

"If only I had some shoes with me", thought Bill wishing he could throw them at that cat.

Then Seymour released his Doduo on stage and both heads started chirping a beautiful love song.

"Why that sounds like my all time favorite love song!" said Jenny delighted.

"I was hoping you'd like it", said Seymour shyly brushing his hair back. Just then, one of the Doduo heads started to squawk out a wrong note. The other head got mad and started squawking angrily at its partner. Then the Doduo started to have a wrestling match with itself.

"Yeah, this is way better than karaoke!" shouted a guy in the audience who was obviously a wrestling fan. An embarrassed Seymour just sucked Doduo back into its ball and hung his head down in shame while Jenny patted his arm. "It was a nice in the beginning", she whispered to Seymour and then kissed him.

"Thanks Jen", said Seymour feeling a little better.

"Don't worry Seymour", said Misty, "My Seadra is sure to win this contest for you and all of us."

"And now", said the girl as she and the guy pushed out a small tank. "Next we'll be hearing a Seadra sing its famous song of the sirens."

"Okay Seadra, you're on!" said Misty. But instead, Psyduck popped out of Misty's backpack and just floated there in the tank.

"This Seadra looks more like a Psyduck to me", said the girl, "Let's just hope it can sing much better than it looks."

"Psyduck!" shouted Misty, "I wanted Seadra to perform, not you!"

"Psyduck?" asked the duck while scratching his head.

"As long as you're up there, just sing something", sighed Misty. Psyduck started to think for a moment and was about to open his bill. Just then he realized that he was in a tank of water and couldn't swim.

"PSY-YAI-YAI-YAI-YAI-YAI-YAI-YAI-YAI-YAI!" shouted Psyduck as he was splashing around in a panic. Misty was imagining the booby-prize trophy they were gonna hand her until they heard the crowd cheering and clapping. They actually thought Psyduck was singing a new kind of song.

"That's a great song your Psyduck's singing", said a lady at a table right next to theirs. "What do you call it?"

"I call it No-Brainer", sighed Misty while smiling and thinking about her unpredictable Psyduck.

Then Bill came on stage wearing an old sea captain's uniform. He was proudly standing on stage singing a collection of songs from Gilbert and Sullivan.

"He's not actually doing this is he?" said Stella while our heroes were shocked as well. Even the audience couldn't believe that they were actually hearing a Rattata singing in human English.

"I've got this contest in the bag", thought Bill while continuing singing.

"Hey!" shouted a fat man from a table in the middle. "No Pokemon can sing in English! I bet its just trained to lip sync whenever a tape recorder's playing! BOOOO!" Everyone agreed and started booing and throwing tomatoes and cheese at Bill.

"Poor Bill", said Cameron, "Besides being changed into a Rattata, this must be the second worst day of his life!"

"I wouldn't say that", smiled Bill as he was back with the group eating a delicious stack of tomato slices and cheese. "I may not win an RV, but I did come out a winner in the end in my eyes and my tastebuds too. BURP!!!"  
"All right Donnie, you're up", said Cameron the minute the hosts announced Donphan's name. Donnie appeared on the stage and he started trumpeting the tune of The Baby Elephant Walk while marching around. Everyone sat there silently smiling and clapping along while Sandy was snapping its claws to the beat.

"That Donphan sure is something, isn't it Butch?", said the girl host from backstage.

"You said it Cass", said the guy, "But wait till they all get a blast from our main star!" and they looked into a dressing room where a round figure was at a mirror making itself beautiful. "Jiggly", it sang.

* * * * * *

Team Rocket had entered the cafe wearing brown trenchcoats, hats, and sunglasses. "I don't know why we have to wear these things", whined James, "They completely hide my figure."

"Haven't you forgotten that our faces are on every wanted poster in every building?" said Jessie, "They even have them here!"

James looked up at the bulletin board and found a wanted poster with him and Jessie on them. "They still can't get my good side!" he sighed.

"There's an empty table right there in the back", said Reiko, "Let's be like the Growlithes that mark their territory so no one else will dare claim it."

"Uh, sure. Whatever you say my dear", said Jessie who was starting to find her favorite intern's metaphors kind of annoying. They approached the very back table with no idea that the rebels were way over at the front table. As the Rockets sat down, they watched a huge Snorlax sleeping while snoring the tune of Mr. Sandman.

"I wonder how its master taught it to sing while it is sleeping?" asked Reiko.

"Maybe it listens to subliminal message tapes while its sleeping", said James, "That's how my parents got me to love and respect roses instead of stomping all over them", and he took out one of his trademark roses and sniffed it.

"Well, however that Snorlax learned to sing, my Lickitung'll stomp its dreams flat!" smiled Jessie as she polished her Pokeball.

* * * * * *

"Next we have 3 groovy last minute entries", said the girl host, "First up is a Lickitung that'll tickle you with its golden tongue!"

"A Lickitung?!" gasped Cameron, "Could it be? No, I'd better not worry about it right now. I bet there're a lot of trainers in this world that own Lickitungs besides Jessie." Lickitung suddenly materialized onto the stage, stuck out its long golden tongue, and started to sing its beautiful opera song.

"I've never seen a Lickitung with a golden tongue that can sing beautiful operettas", said Bill.

"Neither have I", said Seymour as he adjusted his glasses. "That looks like gold paint on that poor Lickitung's tongue."

"Who would do such a cruel thing to their Pokemon?" asked Misty.

"I probably know who", whispered Cameron, "And I sure hope she isn't here in this caf !"

While Team Rocket was happily listening to Lickitung's singing. Lickitung suddenly spotted a man sitting at a table eating Buffalo wings. It quickly stuck out its long tongue and scooped up all the wings from the basket.

"No Lickie!" grumbled Jessie. "This is no time to be eating, you have a song to finish!"

"And besides", said James, "They're not boneless! You could choke!" But Lickie didn't choke, instead its mouth caught on fire for that man ordered his wings ultra-HOT! Lickie ran around the cafe spouting fire while everyone laughed. Jessie took a huge pitcher of cola and dumped it into Lickie's mouth the minute it came to their table.

"Lickie!" said Lickie and showed its gratitude by uncurling its tongue and giving Jessie the bones letting them drop all wet and slobbery onto her hand.

"Ugggh, your welcome", said a disappointed Jessie as she stuffed the bones into James's pocket while he wasn't looking.

"Don't worry my fellow Rockets", said James proudly, "My Weezing's up next. Its powerful windpipes are sure to win us that RV!"

* * * * * *

"So much for that supposedly cool Lickitung", said the guy host, "Next we have a way out Weezing who's gonna sing for us something good, hopefully." And Weezing materialized on stage floating around in a pink dress and ribbons on both of its heads and lipstick on both of its mouths.

"A Lickitung and a Weezing?!" Cameron whispered to everyone. "You know what that means?!"

"Team Rocket definitely must be here", said Jenny seriously.

"Who else but James would dress up a Pokemon in pink", said Misty.

"Should we escape before they spot us?" asked Bill.

"But I have a feeling we just might win that RV" said Stella, "Please, let's all stay just in case we actually win it. And if we do, we can easily escape from Team Rocket in our new RV!"

"What do you say everyone?" Brock asked the group.

"Oh okay", sighed everyone while Stella smiled.

"But let's just keep our heads down so that Team Rocket won't spot us", said Jenny as she took off her police hat and made Cameron take off his hat too.

"Look, Weezing's about to sing", said Seymour. But when Weezing opened up its mouths, instead of sweet notes, out came smelly smog. Everyone in the room started coughing while the guy host came out with a fire extinguisher and filled up Weezing with extinguishing cream until it looked like a huge rotten Twinkie.

"Weezing, return", said a disappointed James as he sucked the poor Weezing back into its ball.

"James, I thought you said your Weezing could sing beautifully?!" shouted an angry Jessie.

"It can!" whined James, "If you can overlook the smog spewing." Jessie just whacked James's head until it went straight down his trenchcoat. James unbuttoned his coat and said, "This is a whole new perspective for me!"

"Reiko, it's up to you to save the day", said Jessie, "Yeccch, I can't believe a powerful villain like me said those 3 horrid words! Save the Day! Yecch, I said it again!"

"Relax my Queen", smiled Reiko as she waited for her announcement and sent her Pokemon on stage. It was Kingler. It was wearing a Spanish hat with a rose in its mouth. And it was snapping both its claws like castanets to a beautiful Spanish song.

"Reiko sure is a talented trainer", smiled Cameron who was enjoying Kingler's performance while trying to keep a low profile as well. When Kingler was done, everyone started applauding and shouting, " OLE!" Kingler blushed while bowing, even Reiko couldn't help doing the same thing.

"Way to go Reiko", said James.

"You're sure to win us that RV!" smiled Jessie. "That way, we'll have room for all those rebels when we take them back as our prisoners!"

"Thank you your majesty", said Reiko smiling but wishing that she wouldn't win it.

"Didn't we have such a great hip show?" asked the girl host, "But before we announce the winner, we have yet another last minute entry!"

"So put your swinging hands together for our final act", said the guy, "The soft and soothing tones of Jigglypuff!"

"Jigglypuff?" thought Cameron. "I wondered if Jigglypuff would show up in our adventure."

"JIGGLYPUFF?!!" cried Misty and Brock while holding each other in fear.

"JIGGLYPUFF?!!" cried Jessie and James doing the same thing with Reiko wondering why they were both so nervous.

Out came a cute little pink balloon like Pokemon with huge friendly eyes. "Aw, it's so cute", smiled Stella, "Why are you both so afraid of it?"

"You don't understand", said Brock while shaking, "That Jigglypuff's big trouble!"

"Yeah!" shouted Misty, "We've gotta get out of here fast!" But it was too late. Just as Misty and Brock were about to get up. Jigglypuff had taken out her trusty microphone and started singing her beautiful and relaxing song.

"Jigglypuff, Jig-gl-yyyyy-puff, Jigglypuff, Jig-gl-yyyy", sang Jigglypuff happily. Cameron looked around as saw all his friends about to fall asleep.

"This sure brings back some sweet memories", yawned Misty as she and the others fell right asleep. Cameron looked around and saw the entire audience dropping their heads down on the tables one by one, even Sandy fell asleep in his arms.

Jessie and James leapt out of their seats dragging Reiko with them and started to head on out the door. "Why are we leaving?" she asked while yawning. "That music isn't bad, it's kind of relaxing. YAWN!!!" and she fell right to sleep while Jessie and James fell asleep too before they could reach the door.

Jigglypuff saw the entire audience had fallen asleep during her singing and became very angry. She took apart her mike revealing a magic marker. She then hopped over to each table and started scribbling funny designs on everyone's faces. "Just like on the TV show", thought Cameron while smiling a little. He then realized that he didn't fall asleep at all. "Hmmm", thought Cameron, "Maybe after watching Jigglypuff sing so many times in the cartoon, I've become immune to her sleep effects." He predicted as he watched Jiggly continuing with her scribbling.

"Here's something I bet Jigglypuff longs to hear", thought Cameron as he started clapping his hands. "Bravo Jigglypuff!" shouted Cameron. "You're an excellent singer!"

Jiggly looked up surprised at the first person who didn't fall asleep during her singing. "JIGGLY!!" cried Jiggly with a smile on her face and tears in her eyes as she bounced of a table and into Cameron's arms hugging him gratefully.

"You deserve it", smiled Cameron happy that he made one of his favorite character's day. Just then, they saw two shadows approaching. Cameron and Jiggly hid underneath a table and saw it was the two hosts.

"Excellent", said the guy who took some earplugs out of his ears, "They're out like burned Magnemites!"

"And now we get to steal some musically talented Pokemon", said the girl taking out her earplugs too, "We're sure to get on Letterman tonight with an all Pokemon band!"

"But first let's get out of these dumb retro get-ups", said the guy as they both removed their host clothes revealing Rocket uniforms. The girl fixed her blonde hair into two long pigtails and the guy removed his fake beard. Cameron suddenly recognized the two.

"Butch and Cassidy!" gasped Cameron. "I remember those two from that breeding center episode! They tried to open up a phoney breeding center so they could steal Pokemon for Giovanni and make Jessie and James look bad!"

"Jiggly?" asked Jiggly wondering what Cameron was talking about.

"Come on Butch, let's bag some Pokeballs before they awaken", smiled Cassidy as they both took out some large sacks and started stealing all the Pokeballs from the sleeping audience along with the Pokemon that were out of their balls.

"Hey Cass, come over here!" said Butch as he pointed to the figures of Jessie, James, and Reiko sleeping on the floor.

"It's my old nemesis Jessie along with that stupid partner of hers", said Cassidy.

"The last I heard of them, they took over some town and made themselves the rulers", said Butch. "I wonder why they'd be hanging out in a dump like this?"

"Who cares?" said Cassidy evily, "But I've got a great idea. Let's bump them off and disguise ourselves as them. Then we can head back to their kingdom and become the new King and Queen!"

"Great idea Cass", smiled Butch, "But what should we do with this cute chick that's hanging out with them?" he asked as he gazed at the sleeping Reiko with lusty eyes.

"Just do whatever you want with her", said Cassidy knowing that Butch would do just that.

"It'll be my pleasure, believe me!" said Butch with drool in his mouth. He undid Reiko's trenchcoat and was about to undo more of her clothing until a voice shouted out. "YOU LEAVE HER ALONE!!!"

Butch and Cassidy looked up and found an angry Cameron standing there. And boy was he mad. "It's bad enough you were gonna steal everyone's Pokemon, but I won't stand here and let you take advantage of this poor sleeping girl!"

The two Rockets were surprised that this boy hadn't fallen asleep like the rest of them. "Why didn't Jigglypuff's singing knock you out?!" demanded Butch.

"Well it's a good thing it didn't", smiled Cassidy, "Because we now get the pleasure of giving this kid trouble!"

"Double Trouble that is", said Butch.

Cassidy: "To infect the world with devastation!"  
Butch: "To blight all peoples within our nation!"  
Cassidy: "To denounce the goodness of truth and love!"  
Butch: "To extend our wrath to the stars above!"  
Cassidy: "Cassidy!"  
Butch: "Butch!"  
Cassidy: "Team Rocket circling the Earth both day and night!"  
Butch: "Surrender now or you'll surely lose the fight!"

"RATICATE!" said a huge round rat that jumped right in between them.

"So this whole Karaoke contest was nothing but a trick to steal Pokemon, wasn't it?" demanded Cameron.

"You're one bright boy", smiled Cassidy. "And we owe all our success to all you gullible trainers and to our even dumber Jigglypuff!"

"Yeah!" said Butch, "When we first heard about that Jigglypuff, we knew it had the power to put people to sleep with its singing. So we set up this little Karaoke contest and invited it to be the final act so it can sing everyone to sleep and we come in and start poaching Pokemon! What a little airhead that Jigglypuff was!"

"JIGGLY!" grumbled Jiggly listening to the conversation from under a table.

"Well, I'm not gonna let you take all these innocent people's Pokemon as long as my Pokemon and I are still awake!" shouted Cameron as he released a Pokeball. "Sandy, I choose you!" and out popped Sandy still asleep from Jiggly's singing. "Uh oh!" said Cameron nervously.

"What was that you were saying about your Pokemon being still awake?" cackled Cassidy. "Raticate, hyper fang now!"

"RATICATE!!!" shouted Raticate as it opened its huge mouth ready to put a painful bite on the sleeping Sandy. Cameron quickly pulled Sandy back into his ball just in time and then released another Pokemon. Raticate suddenly broke its fangs for it tried to bite onto the tough hard skin of Donphan.

"RAATTT!" cried Raticate as it was holding its broken fangs in its hands. Donnie took one look at the Raticate and he screamed and jumped into Cameron's arms squashing him onto the floor.

"Will you look at that?" laughed Butch, "The big bulky longnose is scared of a small little rodent! What a joke!"

"And Raticate's defenseless too!" laughed Cassidy also. Then stopped and looked at her poor hurt Raticate and pulled it back into its ball. "Don't worry Rattie", she said soothingly, "A little crazy glue will fix your teeth right up. As soon as we teach this brat and his fraidy Pokemon some manners!"

Donphan, who no longer saw the scary Raticate got off of Cameron, helped him up with his trunk, and jumped right in front of Butch and Cassidy ready to defend his master.

"And I got just the Pokemon", smiled Butch, "Go Drowzee!" and he released a Pokemon that looked like a small tapir with a sleepy look on its face.

"A Drowzee?!" gasped Cameron as he aimed his Pokedex at it.

"DROWZEE, the hypnosis Pokemon", replied Dexeena, "Puts enemies to sleep and eats their dreams. Occasionally gets sick from eating bad dreams."

"I remember how tough Drowzee's were in my game", Cameron whispered to Donnie, "Maybe we can knock Drowzee out before it uses its psychic powers. Give it your tackle attack!"

"PHAN!" said Donnie as it stampeded over to the sleepy Drowzee.

"Drowzee, give it your hypnosis attack", said Butch. Before Donnie could lay an inch on Drowzee, its eyes started to glow and Donnie was immediately put to sleep.

"No Donnie!" cried Cameron as he saw his Donphan snoring while a bubble formed in his trunk.

"Nice work Drowzee!" smiled Butch, "No one can get past your evil eyes!"

"Drowzee!" said Drowzee as it yawned proudly.

"All right then, I choose you Buzz!" said Cameron as he released Buzz.

"Quick Buzz, use your flash attack to blind Drowzee!" commanded Cameron.

"BUZZZZZ" said Buzz while saluting, but Buzz's flash attack wasn't fast enough for Drowzee managed to put him to sleep too. Cameron desperately sent out Vileplume, then Zubat, and finally Slowking. But Drowzee managed to put them all to sleep. There was just no stopping this sleepytime foe.

"Looks like its lights out for you too kid!" laughed Butch. "Drowzee, give all these sleeping beauties your dream eater attack."

"Drowzee!" said Drowzee as it released some funky waves at all of Cameron's sleeping Pokemon. They all got up and approached Cameron and it looked like they were getting ready to attack him.

"Guys, what are you doing?!" cried Cameron as Slowking started squirting water at him while Buzz was shooting thundershocks. "It's me, Cameron. I'm your trainer, sergeant, friend, and Mamma!"

"Mamma?!" wondered Cassidy.

"Save your breath brat!" laughed Butch, "Cause once a Drowzee eats your dreams, it'll have you under its control. Just like your loving Pokemon over here."

"I can't wait to see the looks on these poor Pokemon's faces when they find out that they've killed their beloved master!" laughed Cassidy.

Cameron backed up in a corner as his own Pokemon slowly moved in for the kill. He wanted to release Sandy, but he was afraid Drowzee would put him under its control too and he couldn't bear to see that happen. Just then Jigglypuff jumped right in front of Cameron and used her disable attack on the Pokemon making them completely paralyzed.

"Thank you Jiggly", smiled Cameron as he took out his Pokeballs and sucked all his Pokemon back in.

"Jigglypuff", said Jiggly bowing to him. Just then she was grabbed by the curly hair by an angry Cassidy. "Just what do you think you're doing you stupid puffball?!" she shouted.

"Yeah, you're supposed to be on our side!" shouted Butch as he grabbed her by the feet. But Jiggly started puffing up like a balloon and started body slamming the two Rockets until they hit the floor.

"You'll pay for that!" shouted Butch, "Drowzee, give it your poison gas attack!"

"Drowzee!" said Drowzee as it opened its mouth and sprayed poison gas at Jiggly and Cameron. But Jiggly raised her hands up and created a glass box around them protecting them from the gas.

"Nice reflect attack", smiled Cameron while Jiggly blushed.

"That little glass house won't protect you from Drowzee's ultimate attack!" shouted Butch, "Give 'em your metronome now!"

"Drowzee", said Drowzee as it started to wiggle its fingers around. "Wait a minute Butch", said Cassidy, "What if Drowzee ends up launching a weak attack like tail whip"

"Don't worry Cass", smiled Butch, "I've trained this Drowzee to only metronome up powerful non-wussy attacks. Just you wait and see!"

"Did you hear that Jiggly?" said Cameron, "Can you increase your reflect attack so Drowzee can't harm us?"

"Jigglypuff!" said Jiggly as she started wiggling her hands as hard as she could creating an even bigger glass house that looked really fancy.

"Wow", said Cameron impressed, "Not only are you a great singer and sketcher, but you're talented in all kinds of arts!"

"Jiggly", said Jiggly blushing ever redder than before.

"Too bad Drowzee's gonna destroy your masterpiece", laughed Butch, "Because here comes its attack!" But unfortunately for the Rockets, Drowzee released an explosion attack. The huge boom caused an entire wall of the caf to go down while Cameron and Jiggly were protected in their glass house.

"Jiggly", said Jiggly pointing to the open sky. Cameron looked up and saw Butch, Cassidy, and Drowzee flying up in the air and dropping the sacks of stolen Pokemon at his feet.

"Oh sure", shouted Cassidy, "You would have to teach Drowzee to metronome an explosion attack! The most dangerous attack that could wipe out itself and its trainer! What do you have to say for yourself?!"

"I always wondered what it's like whenever I see Jessie and James fly up in the air like this", said a dazed Butch.

"Looks like this Team Rocket's blasting off for the first time!" they both shouted as they flew off into the sky and landed through the roof of a local jail.

* * * * * *

When everyone in the cafe had awoken, Cameron explained to them all that this contest was all a hoax to steal their Pokemon. "I remember Cassidy and Butch!" growled Misty remembering how they mistreated her Psyduck when she left him at that fake breeding center of theirs. "Just wait till I get my hands on them!"

"Wait a minute", he soon realized, "I have to see if all my Pokemon are free from Drowzee's control!" and he nervously took all of his Pokeballs and released his six Pokemon.

"Are you all still my friend?" asked Cameron. And they all replied by smiling, running over to him, and hugging every part of his body shouting "SHREW, VILE, BAT, SLOW, BUZZ, PHAAAANNN!"

"Thank you my friends!" smiled a teary Cameron as he hugged his Pokemon back. Everyone in the room started to cheer for Cameron and his Pokemon family for saving their Pokemon from Team Rocket.

Stella then saw the RV still standing on the stage. "That reminds me", she said, "Who's supposed to win that RV?"

Brock got on stage and touched the RV and it collapsed on the floor. "It's nothing but a cardboard cut-out!" he said disgusted. Everyone moaned and complained and were about to leave. Until a voice called out, "Cheer up everyone!"

There stood a chubby man with a white shirt, red vest, black bow tie, and a brown mustache. "I'm the owner of the Crimson Cafe. First of all, I want to apologize to all of you for letting those horrible Rockets trick me into having a fake contest and a fake prize here. And since I'm the owner, I want to declare who I think is the winner." And he approached Donphan.

"Cameron", he said, "Not only did you try to save all my loyal customers' Pokemon, but your Donphan sure can play a mean nose. It reminds me of my days as a blues singer. And I want to declare you and your Donphan the winner, what do you say everyone?"

"AYE!!!" agreed everyone in the caf while both Cameron and Donnie blushed.

"I'm sorry that I can't give you an RV" said the owner, "But I'd like to reward you and your friends a slightly used orange van with only 180,000 miles on it. It's the least I can offer you. What do you say?"

"Thank you sir", said Cameron and then he turned to his friends. "Sorry I couldn't win you a new RV", he said, "But I hope another van is just as good."

"Hey, no problem", smiled Brock, "We don't care what we have just as long as we get back on the road."

"Speak for yourself", thought Misty wondering where she could plug a hot comb in a van.

"Say, where is Jigglypuff?" asked Bill looking around the place.

"And what happened to Jessie, James, and Reiko?" wondered Cameron who found them gone as well.

* * * * * *

Later that night, Jessie, James, and Reiko had taken refuge in a flophouse in another nearby town. They had just scrubbed off Jigglypuff's artwork from their faces and were getting into their beds.

"I thought I'd never had to scrub hard this perfect face again", wailed Jessie looking at her red scrubbed face in the mirror."

"You were right my Queen", said Reiko, "That Jigglypuff was dangerous. I am grateful we woke up and got out of that caf before it started singing again."

"But now we don't have an RV to go after those rebels", sighed James.

"Don't worry James", said Jessie, "I'll call up Meowth again tomorrow. And he'd better answer this time if he values all of his nine precious lives! Right now let's all just get some sleep."

"But I don't feel the tiniest bit sleepy", whined James, "If only someone here could sing me to sleep." Then James had his wish come true for Jigglypuff stepped in and sang her soothing song putting him, Jessie, and Reiko to sleep.

Jigglypuff had accepted a job at the flophouse putting wide-awake customers to sleep. She didn't mind that her singing kept putting people to sleep anymore. She was just happy that one person had stayed awake through her whole song. "Jiggly!" sighed Jiggly as she took out her marker and started scribbling Cameron's name all over the Rockets' faces.

TO BE CONTINUED


	20. Taken for Granite

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 20

Taken For Granite

Today we find Team Rocket out in the middle of a vast desert. They had finished digging a big pothole in the middle of a paved road. "Forgive me for asking this my Queen", said Reiko, "But do you really believe that an ordinary pothole in the road will stop those rebels?"

"It will if we add one special ingredient", said Jessie. "James, put in the ingredient."

"One pinch of oregano should do the trick", smiled James while dressed as Julia Child and speaking in her voice, "And a pinch of nutmeg would do just nice too." And he started pouring spices into the hole.

"I meant the ingredient that hurts people!" grumbled Jessie as she whacked James on the head with a hot spatula.

"Oops, sorry Jess", said a red-faced James as he put a small land mine into the hole and sprinkled some extra nutmeg into it just to give it spice. Then he took a bag of cement and poured it over the hole and smoothed it evenly. Then he started to write his name in it with his finger. "Oooooh", he said very pleased, "I wonder if I can mail this off to The Chinese Theatre in Disneyworld?!"

An angry Jessie just grabbed James by the hair and used his face to even out the mess he just made on the pavement. "I wonder if cement does wonders on the skin?" said James as he took out his mirror.

Jessie was about to open up her mouth but then realized that insulting James will never make him smarter no matter how many times she tries.

"Did you just put a land mine in the road?" asked Reiko.

"You are correct my dear", smiled Jessie evily. "A source just told me that our little rebel friends will be driving an orange van down this road in a few minutes. And once their tires run over this spot of pavement, BOOM!!! No more rebels!"

"Doesn't it make you feel all bad and tingly inside?" said James with dark stars in his eyes.

"Come on everyone", said Jessie, "Let's get behind that huge boulder and watch the fun when it happens."

"Oh no!" thought Reiko fearing that this'll definitely be the last of Cameron. Capturing him was one thing, but killing him she just couldn't be a part of. While Jessie and James headed over to the boulder, Reiko took one of her metal stars and secretly threw it at where the mine was buried.

"KABOOOOOM!!!" went a loud sound.

"What was that?!" said both Jessie and James surprised while holding each other.

"Congratulations my Queen", said Reiko as she pointed to the huge hole in the road. "The rebels' van just drove past here and over your mine. Like the Poliwag that loses its tail forever when it evolves. Our enemies are definitely done in for good!"

"That's funny", said James while scratching his head. "I didn't hear any kind of motor vehicle coming this way."

"Who cares", smiled Jessie, "I'm just glad those bothersome rebels are out of my hair forever. Come on, let's see if there's anything left of them." And she and James approached the hole. Reiko smiled for maybe now Jessie and James would give up the hunt for Cameron and return back to Rocketville.

"That sure looks like a deep hole", said Jessie, "I wonder how far they went?"

"Uh, I think we're about to find out!" cried James as he pointed to the road. Little cracks suddenly started to form around the sides of the road until they got bigger and bigger and started to form around their feet.

"May I suggest we be like the wingless Dodrio and RUN FOR OUR LIVES!!!!" shouted Reiko.

"Yes, I give us all permission!!" shouted a panicked Jessie as she, James and Reiko ran like crazy down the road while those huge cracks started chasing after them. But they weren't fast enough and the cracks suddenly tore the road apart sending Team Rocket falling down a huge black pit.

"Looks like Team Rocket's tumbling down again!!!" they all shouted as they disappeared into the darkness.

* * * * * *

The cracks started to head into the opposite direction of the road right into the path of an orange van with Officer Jenny at the wheel as usual. "We're sure lucky your Donphan won us this van Cameron", said Brock, "Otherwise, we'd be walking to Cinnabar Island the rest of the way."

"Thanks", said Cameron, "But I don't think we'd be able to walk to an island. Unless we had diving suits."

"And there's no way this van can travel under water", said Misty. "Unless it's actually a built in submarine."

"How long will it be until we reach Cinnabar Jen?" asked Seymour.

"Well", said Jenny, "If we just follow this road for about a few minutes, we should come to the sea where Cinnabar Island lies."

"Is it me or does this road looked kind of cracked?" asked Cameron as he looked out the side window.

"It looks okay to me", said Stella as she looked out the back window.

"I think you should look out the front window", said Seymour as he pointed to the huge crack that was crawling around like a snake opening up the road.

"Quick Jenny!" cried Bill. "Turn this van around!"

"You don't have to tell me twice!" shouted Jenny as she started to make a sharp turn in the opposite direction but was too late. The road opened up and the van and its passengers started to fall down the same darkness like Team Rocket did.

"AAAAAAHHH!" screamed everyone as the van kept falling. Cameron hoped and prayed that a cartoon miracle would come along and save them at the last minute while Misty pulled out a piece of paper and started writing her will. "To my sisters, I leave, uh, I leave. Well I can't really leave you anything cause you've always taken everything I've owned! So Goodbye! AAAAAHHHH!"

"Wigglytuff, I choose you!" shouted Stella as she released her Wigglytuff and pushed her out the window putting her underneath the falling van.

"I thought you were over mistreating your Pokemon?!" shouted Cameron, "Now you're gonna make that poor Wigglytuff break our fall?! That won't even help us at all!"

"Just watch", shouted Stella, "Wiggles, show this doubter what you can do!"

"WIGGLY!" shouted Wiggles as she took a deep breath and started blowing up like a huge balloon. Everyone became surprised at the now gigantic Wigglytuff gently floating down onto the ground while the van landed safely on her soft stomach.

"That was amazing Stella", said Brock.

"Thank you Brockie", smiled Stella winking at him and then turned to Cameron. "Don't you have something to say to me?"

"Oh yes, I'm sorry", said Cameron, "I guess you and Wiggles knew what you were doing after all."

"Think nothing of it", smiled Stella.

"WIGGLYTUFF!" said Wiggles in a not so tiny voice anymore and put her huge face in front of the windshield and made a goofy smile.

* * * * * *

Once they got the van off of Wiggles's stomach. Wiggles shrunk back down to her normal size and hugged Stella happily. "Thank you for saving us Wiggles", smiled Stella.

"Wiggly!" said Wiggles in her cute voice again.

"And thanks for saving the van too", said Jenny, "But I don't know how we're going to get it out of this pit."

"More importantly", said Misty, "How are we going to get out?!"

"Yes", said Seymour as he looked up to the blue sky that looked very far away. "By my calculations, this pit looks like its 30 feet deep."

"Can you calculate a way to get us out?" asked Bill.

"Maybe our flying Pokemon can fly us all out of here", said Cameron, "I got my Zubat."

"And I got my Golbat", said Brock, "Let's try it out!"

So Cameron and Brock released their bats and grabbed onto their talons. Both Zubat and Golbat were trying their best to fly the two boys out of the pit, but with no luck.

"It's no use", sighed Brock, "Neither Zubat nor Golbat are strong enough to carry humans."

"Zubaaaat!" wailed Zubat as she started crying tears for she knew she let her master down.

"It's okay Zubat", said Cameron as he cradled her. "I should never have asked you to do such a hard task." He knew that neither Zubats nor Golbats could fly people to different towns in his Gameboy, and he was hoping it would've been different in this world. But it wasn't. Zubat just flew out of Cameron's arms and hid somewhere in the darkness.

"Zubat, where are you going?!" cried Cameron.

"Just let her be alone for a while", said Brock, "She just needs some time to think."

"Right now we should be thinking too", said Misty, "Thinking about how to get out of this ugly pit!"

"I wouldn't say its ugly Misty", said Brock, "This place has got lots of pretty rocks of every shape and size."

"Yes, they do look beautiful", said Misty who was now seeing the pit clearly. Everyone became awestruck at all the rocks and boulders of every shape, size and color and how they sparkled beautifully.

"I know", said Cameron, "Maybe we can stack all these rocks together so we can climb out of this pit."

"That's a good idea Cameron", said Jenny, "What do you think everyone?"

"Yeah!" smiled Brock, "And lets use all of our Pokemon to help us!" and Brock quickly released Graveler, Onix, Golbat, Rhyhorn, and Vulpix.

The others followed and released all the Pokemon they had with them. Then they all started gathering rocks and boulders and putting them in a big pile. The big Pokemon were carrying and pushing all the big boulders while the smaller ones were carrying the smaller rocks. "That's it guys", smiled Bill as he was carrying a few pebbles with him. "Every little bit helps."

* * * * * *

In another part of the pit, Reiko managed to fall safely down using her Tentacruel as a parachute. But Jessie and James weren't so lucky. When Reiko landed, she found her king and queen lying on the ground badly damaged. "Oh my dear parents' grave!" she gasped. "If only it was me who suffered that bad fall instead of you!"

"I can arrange that!" moaned James who wanted to trip Reiko and make her fall but couldn't move his broken leg.

"I have to get you both back to Rocketville to get treated fast!" said Reiko as she reached into Jessie's pocket and pulled out a Pokeball.

"But those rebels are still on the loose", moaned Jessie. "I just hate the thought of them being free!"

"Relax my queen", said Reiko, "I'll continue the mission alone while you two recover. It's what all of your subjects would want. At least your evil subjects." Then she released Jessie's Kadabra. "Kadabra", said Reiko. "I need you to make yet another ambulance trip. Send the king and queen back to the Rocketville infirmary. You know where it is."

"Kadabra!" nodded Kadabra as it approached Jessie and James. Jessie looked over and saw a mysterious red stone right next to her. She managed to pick it up and her leather glove suddenly turned into a stone glove.

"What in the world is this?" asked a shocked Jessie just as Kadabra teleported out of sight taking her and James with it.

"Team Rocket is too evil even for this deadly rose", said Reiko thinking about how they planned on killing Cameron with that mine in the road. "Ninja's oath or not, I just cannot serve them anymore!" and she took out her Tentacruel and ordered it to carry her out of the pit. Tentacruel replied by lifting Reiko onto its back and using its other tendrils to climb the long rocky wall.

* * * * * *

Sandy was busy using his rock slide technique to create more boulders to add to the pile while Cameron was giving him a thumbs up for his excellent work. But unfortunately, Misty's Psyduck wasn't doing so good. He had a huge rock stuck in his bill and he ran over to Misty begging her to get it out.

"Psyduck!" groaned Misty as she managed to yank out the rock. "Why do you always stick things in your stupid bill?!"

"Did you just call me stupid?" asked Bill.

"No Bill, I was just talking about my stupid Psyduck", groaned Misty, "There is no way on Earth I'll ever understand the way he thinks. If he does think at all!"

"Then why do you have him out helping us?" asked Bill.

"Because he's the only Pokemon I've got that has hands", said Misty. "All my other water Pokemon wouldn't be of much help down here. Unless...." And she stared at a wall made of connected stones and had an idea.

"Seaking, I choose you", said Misty as she released her Seaking who was flopping around. She then picked it up and put it against the wall. "Seaking, I need you to use your horn drill to make us more rocks."

"Seaking", replied Seaking as it started spinning its horn around boring into the wall creating more rocks for piling.

Graveler had emerged from the darkness with a huge pile of unusual stones in its arms. "Nice work Graveler", smiled Brock. But then Graveler suddenly dropped all the stones and started to glow brightly while changing its shape.

"Brock, what's happening to Graveler?" asked Stella.

"It looks like its evolving", gasped Brock. And sure enough, Graveler did evolve. It was now bigger with a sphere shaped stone body with tiny arms and legs and a head sticking out of it.

"Graveler, you've become a Golem!" said Brock surprised and happy. Cameron took out his Pokedex and aimed it at the new Pokemon.

"GOLEM, The megaton Pokemon. The evolved form of Graveler", replied Dexeena. "Its boulder-like body is extremely hard and can easily withstand dynamite blasts without damage."

"Wow!" smiled Brock as he hugged Golem. "I've always dreamed about having a Golem. And that day has finally come! Thank you Lord!"

"GOLEM!" said Golem while smiling.

"But I thought Gravelers can only evolve into Golems if you transfer their Pokeballs through a cable link", said Jenny.

"Maybe these weird looking stones helped it evolve", said Cameron as he pointed to the huge pile of stones Golem brought them. They were all red with a gray snake shape carved into each one. Cameron was about to pick one up until Seymour stopped him.

"Don't touch it!" cried Seymour. "If these are what I think they are, you'd be in a big stew if you touch them. Stone stew that is!" and he took out a pair of metal tongs and picked up one of the stones. The metal tongs suddenly changed into stone tongs to everyone's surprise except Seymour's.

"Just as I thought", said Seymour. "These are the supposedly extinct Medusa Stones!"

"Medusa Stones?!" asked everyone at once.

"I've heard of Medusa Stones", said Bill, "They're one of the rarest of the evolution stones. But disappeared millions of years ago. They're supposed to help certain rock Pokemon evolve to the next level."

"Like my Golem here", said Brock.

"Not to mention metal tongs", said Stella.

"You mean to say if I had touched those stones, I'd become a lifeless statue?!" gasped Cameron nervously.

"I wouldn't really say that", said Seymour, "Something much worse which I'd rather not talk about. Hurry everyone, we've gotta get these Medusa Stones buried before someone or something else touches them!" And he took a huge shovel out of his labcoat and started burying all those stones faster than the speed of light.

"I'm surprised he can work so fast", said Bill.

"I'm even more surprised he can pull large long items out of that labcoat of his", said Stella.

"There we go", said Seymour as he patted the spot where he buried the stones with his shovel. "No innocent soul will ever be bothered by those stones again."

"Hey guys, look at all the stones my Seaking dug up", called out Misty as she came running up to the group with a huge pile of stones in her hands. "Say, where did that Golem come from?" asked Misty for she was too busy making stones to know about the discovery and banishment of the Medusa Stones.

Just as they were about to speak, Misty put down her stones and gazed happily at a certain one on the top. "Oooooh! Look at this one!" she smiled as she hugged it to her face. "It's all red and sparkly and it looks like a little Ekans has been carved into it."

"NO MISTY, PUT THAT DOWN QUICK!!!" they all shouted at once in a panic. "What's your problem?" asked Misty all curious. "You act like this stone might mutate me into something, uh something, uh, uh, DUH!!" said Misty in a now dopey voice. She suddenly started to glow very brightly and it looked like she was growing and bulking up.

"What's happening to Misty?!" gasped Cameron.

"The thing I hoped wouldn't happen", said Seymour quietly. Misty was now a huge 8 foot rock girl with gray granite skin, granite hair, huge muscular granite arms. Even her clothes were made of stone.

"She's become a mutant Misty monster!" gasped Stella.

"Misty monster?" asked Misty in a huge dopey voice. "Misty not monster. Misty's feelings hurt. Misty smash mean lady!" and she made a huge rocky fist and was about to pound the frightened Stella until Brock yanked her out of the way. Misty slammed her hand on the ground causing everyone around her to fall down.

"Misty, what are you doing?!" cried Brock. "Stella's your friend! She didn't mean to say that to you!"

"Yes Misty", said a shakened Stella, "I'm truly sorry!"

"You side with mean lady?" asked Misty. "Misty MAD!!! Misty smash everything!!!" and she grabbed the van with her huge stone hands, crumpled it up into a big ball and threw it at Cameron, Seymour, Jenny, and Bill who quickly moved out of the way.

"Quick Onix!" cried Brock, "Bind her now!" Onix quickly coiled itself around Misty so she couldn't move her arms. She stood there bound while growling angrily.

"What's happened to you Misty?" asked Cameron.

"This is what I hoped wouldn't happen", moaned Seymour, "Every part of Misty's outside may be big and strong, but her brain stayed the same size. And in that huge body, her brain is now the size of a walnut! She doesn't know what's happening or who her friends or enemies are!"

"Is there any way we can change her back?" asked Jenny.

"I have no idea!" cried Seymour. "I'll need some time to study Misty and figure out a solution."

"But I don't think Onix can hold her that long!" said Brock and he was right. Misty managed to break free from Onix's grip and she started swinging the huge python around like a bullwhip. She then let go and Onix went flying into the crushed van damaging it even more.

"Why do we keep having bad luck with vehicles?!" moaned Jenny.

"Oh no, Onix!" cried Brock as he sucked it back into its ball. "Go Grav..., I mean Golem. Knock her out with a take down attack!"

"GOLEM!" said Golem as it curled up and started rolling at Misty. But Misty managed to catch Golem and started bouncing it around like a ball.

"This fun!" said Misty with a rocky smile. Then threw Golem like a bowling ball into the huge rock pile everyone had made. Everyone ducked in cover as all the big and little stones started flying around the place while a few bounced off of Misty's body. "That tickle!" she laughed.

"Quick V.P", called out Cameron. "Use your sleep powder on her now!"

"VILE!" said V.P. as it was about to spray its sleep powder until Misty smooshed it into a flat plant.

"V.P!" cried Cameron as he peeled the Vileplume from the ground and snapped it like a towel back into shape.

"If only her sisters could see her now", thought Brock, "They'd think twice before they start to pick on her! That's it! Maybe water attacks will tire her out."

"Good idea", said Seymour, "Then I can examine her and figure out a cure for her. Wartortle, use your water gun on her now!"

"You too Slowie", said Cameron. Both Slowie and Wartortle gathered around Misty and started squirting water all over her. "Misty hate water!" she said while cringing. "At least Misty think so." Then started to get up again.

"Quick you guys, you've gotta assist your fellow water Pokemon", said Bill to Misty's Staryu, Starmie, and Poliwag. But the three Pokemon backed away shaking their heads and appendages no.

"I know Misty's your master", said Bill, "But she really needs your help. And the only way to help her is with water power. You've got to do it if you want your beloved Misty back!"

The three Pokemon agreed and jumped right next to Slowie and Wartortle and started using their water gun attacks too. And five water guns seemed to work. Misty got down on her arms and knees all weakened with wetness.

"Psyduck?" said Psyduck who now just noticed the change in his master.

"Psyduck?" asked Misty who just got up and stared at the duck.

"Psy", said Psyduck.

"Psy?" asked Misty.

"Psy", said Psyduck again.

"Psy!" said Misty now with a smile on her face. "Misty like duckie!" And she plopped down onto the ground and had a delightful conversation with Psyduck speaking only in Psys.

"I guess they now have a better understanding for each other now that Misty's brain is the same size as her Psyduck's." Said Brock.

"And Psyduck seems to be a lot happier too", said Cameron who was actually seeing the headache-filled duck smile.

"Now we have to figure out how change Misty back to her normal self", said Seymour as he took out a microscope and studied Misty's stone back. Misty was too busy talking with Psyduck to notice what Seymour was doing.

"Oh dear", sighed Seymour, "Oh me, oh my, oh goodness!"

"Those 4 Oh phrases don't sound very good to me", said Bill.

"I'm afraid not", said Seymour, "I've never seen anything like this. It looks like Misty is now made of ten layers of pure granite. I don't see any way we can break through all that stone to get our Misty back."

"Could things possibly get any worse?!" whined Stella. And sure enough Stella just had to say those words. Something started to burst out from where Seymour had buried all those Medusa Stones. There in front of our heroes were four new Pokemon. The first two consisted of snails. One small and the other large with huge spikes on its shell. Cameron aimed his Pokedex at the snails.

"OMANYTE AND ITS EVOLVED FORM OMASTAR", said Dexeena, "These two mollusk Pokemon have been reported extinct for millions of years. But it looks like those reports are wrong now!"

The last two consisted of a flat shellfish and a tall shellfish with long sharp claws. Cameron activated his Pokedex again.

"KABUTO AND ITS EVOVLED FORM KABUTOPS", said Dexeena. "These two shellfish Pokemon have also been reported extinct. Boy, is my creator gonna have a field day if he sees these babies!"

"If those Pokemon are supposed to be extinct, how can they be standing here in our views right now?" asked Brock.

"I think I know", said Bill. "Seymour must've buried those Medusa Stones right over a bunch of buried Pokemon fossils. And being exposed to those stones must've revived them!"

"Why didn't I think of that?" said Seymour bowing his head down in shame.

"Why don't you think of a way to protect us?" shouted Stella as the four angry Pokemon started to charge right at our heroes. Kabutops tried to slash up Stella but Brock pulled her out of the way just as Kabutops slashed a stalagmite in two.

Kabuto suddenly pounced onto Bill and started absorbing his energy. "No please!" cried Bill. "I've already been stuck in a Kabuto costume once. I don't need this again!" But then Sandy appeared and threw a rock at Kabuto knocking it off of Bill.

"Shrew?" asked Sandy as he helped up Bill.

"Yes Sandy, I'm fine", said Bill. "Thank you."

"If I remember, these four Pokemon are part water type", said Cameron. "Buzz, give those guys your thunderbolt attack!"

"BUZZ, EL, BUZZ!" shouted Buzz as he launched his thunderbolt at the Omanyte and Omastar. But the electricity didn't damage the snails one bit.

"What just happened?!" gasped Cameron, "They're supposed to be electrified since they're water types!"

"But they're also rock types too", said Brock. "And this is the desert. They probably don't have any water in their bodies!" Then the snails started to blast themselves at Cameron, Brock, and Buzz like cannonballs.

"Look out guys! That's a spike cannon attack!" shouted Brock as he and the others quickly leapt out of the way.

Misty and Psyduck were too busy playing pat-a-cake to notice the battle going on. But their game got interrupted when Omanyte knocked Psyduck into a stone wall.

"PSY-YAI-YAI!" cried a hurt Psyduck. Misty looked sad at the poor Psyduck and then growled angrily. The four new Pokemon stopped battling and looked surprised at the giant stone girl.

"You hurt nice duckie!" growled Misty. "Now Misty will hurt you!!!" And she picked up some huge boulders and started throwing them non-stop at the four making them hit the wall.

"It looks like Misty just leaned rock throw", said Bill.

"She'd definitely be great if we want to enter her in a gym match", said Brock. They looked at the four Pokemon who were totally too weak to fight.

"Quick guys, let's catch them before they attack again", said Jenny as she took out an empty Pokeball and caught Kabutops. Stella then caught Kabuto, Seymour caught Omastar, and finally Brock finally caught Omanyte.

"All right!" shouted all four of our heroes at once as they held up their balls. "We caught Omanyte, Omastar, Kabuto, and Kabutops!!!"

"I guess everyone does want to be like Ash", thought Cameron.

"You okay nice duckie?" asked Misty as she picked up her bruised Psyduck. But his headache was now worse than ever. And when a Psyduck's headache reaches its highest. It lashes out uncontrollable psychic attacks.

"PSY-YAI-YAI-YAI-YAI!!" shouted Psyduck as he released his confusion attack at Misty. Misty started flying all over the place bouncing off walls and the ground while everyone tried to hide somewhere. Misty's rocky skin started to crumble as Psyduck's power continued. And finally Misty zoomed out of the pit and into outer space just missing a tiny Russian satellite that contained a skeleton of a Growlithe.

Then Misty started soaring back down to earth like a meteor back into the pit smashing into the ground. Our heroes gathered around Misty who was now a pile of smashed rocks.

"No, Misty!!!" gasped Brock.

"This can't be!" said Cameron with tears in his eyes while everyone sadly stared at the rubble that used to be their friend. Psyduck started gushing tears out of his eyes because he killed his beloved master.

"Psyduck, will you keep that racket down?!" called out a muffled voice from the rubble. "I don't need another headache from you!" Everyone quickly dug through the rocks and found Misty who was back to her normal human self.

"Misty, you're alive and back to normal!" cried Cameron happily. Everyone started cheering as well.

"You guys won't believe the dream I just had", said Misty groggily. "I dreamt that I understood my Psyduck and we became best friends. Can you imagine such a myth?"

Everyone just started laughing, even Psyduck, while Misty was curiously scratching her head only to find a piece of stone hair.

* * * * * *

"You mean to say I was a big stone monster?!" said Misty shocked as she clutched her head in disbelief.

"That's right", said Brock. "And you gave us all quite a workout."

"Not to mention our new van", said Jenny as she pointed to the crushed van.

"Did I do that?" asked Misty. "I.. I'm so sorry. I don't know why I did that!"

"It wasn't your fault Misty", said Cameron. "You just didn't know what you were doing. We all probably would've done the same thing if we became rock monsters."

"And it's probably just as well", said Jenny. "I don't think we could've gotten that huge van out of this deep pit."

"But we still have to get out of this pit ourselves", said Stella.

"I guess we'd better start gathering up more rocks", said Brock. "Let's start regathering everyone." And all our heroes and their Pokemon started gathering up the rocks so they could rebuild their pile to freedom.

Poor Zubat who was still feeling down saw a Medusa Stone lying on the ground and did some thinking.

"Hey look", said Cameron as he pointed to the stone. "There's one of those Medusa Stones just lying here in the open."

"Keep it away from me!" cried Misty as she jumped into Cameron's arms. "KEEP IT AWAY!!!"

"I'd better get it out of the way", said Seymour as he took out his stone tongs. But before he could pick it up, Zubat zoomed out of the darkness and touched the stone with her wing.

"Zubat, what are you doing?!" shouted Camreon. "Don't touch that thing! Get away from it!" But it was too late. Zubat started glowing and then grew very fast. Her blue skin suddenly turned into gray rocky skin, her wings became extremely long, her talons huge and strong, her mouth changed into a big toothy snout and a stone pointed tail appeared in the back. Everyone stood back as they saw the gigantic new Pokemon extend her stone wings and called out a loud, "AERO!" Cameron took out his Pokedex again.

"AERODACTYL, an extinct flying Pokemon", replied Dexeena. "A ferocious prehistoric Pokemon that goes for the enemy's throat with its saw-like fangs. Archaeologists believe that when a flying Pokemon is exposed to a Medusa Stone, they immediately evolve into an Aerodactyl."

"It looks like we might be in trouble again", said Bill nervously. Aerodactyl slowly approached the nervous Cameron.

"Quick Golem", said Brock as he was about to release his Pokeball. "Use your..."

"No wait Brock", said Stella. "Look at that." And they were all surprised, yet happy at what they saw. Aerodactyl was cuddling her huge rocky head up to Cameron's chest while Cameron patted her snout.

"That Aerodactyl still has Zubat's personality", said Bill.

"But why didn't her brain get small when she got that huge body?" asked Jenny.

"I believe Zubat must have a larger brain than Misty's", said Seymour.

"WHAT!!!" shouted Misty as she stomped her foot down on Seymour's.

"OW!" hollered Seymour as he jumped up and down on one foot. "Then again, maybe not." Then he took off his shoe and saw his red sore foot. "Are you sure you still don't have a stone foot Misty?"

Then Aerodactyl crouched down and wanted Cameron and friends to get on her back. "Zu.., I mean, Aerodactyl!" said Cameron. "You mean you turned yourself into a huge flying Pokemon so you could save us from this pit?"

"AERO!" said Aerodactyl proudly as she winked at Cameron.

"Thank you my friend", said Cameron with a tear in his eye. "I'm glad your brain and your heart are still the same inside that new body of yours."

Everyone got on Aerodactyl's back and then she spread her wings and started to fly up, up, and up until they were out of the pit and into the sky. They all cheered as Cameron hugged the neck of his old Pokemon who was now in a new body.

"Can you take us all south to Cinnabar Island Aero?" asked Cameron.

"Aero!" smiled Aero as she flew at full speed while everyone held on tight.

* * * * * *

Reiko had managed to climb out of that pit and was now sitting on some grass near an ocean. "I just can't go back to Rocketville", she thought. "I have to find Cameron-san. He might know how to help me. But I don't know where to find him."

Just then, she saw something huge flying in the sky. She took out her binoculars and became surprised when she saw it was an Aerodactyl. And became even more surprised when she found the rebels riding on its back.

"Like the shows in Broadway that can leave you speechless, My Cameron-  
san never ceases to amaze me!" smiled Reiko as she watched them all fly over the sea. She then released her Kingler into the water, got on its back, and ordered it to follow the flying friends.

TO BE CONTINUED

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Just for the record. Here's what all of the Pokemon our heroes and villains own so far.

CAMERON: Sandshrew, Vileplume, Slowking, Electabuzz, Donphan, and Aerodactyl.

MISTY: Staryu, Starmie, Seaking, Seadra, Psyduck, Poliwag, and Togepi who is back with Mrs. Ketchum.

BROCK: Golem, Onix, Golbat, Vulpix, Rhyhorn, and Omanyte.

STELLA: Tangela, Persian, Wigglytuff, Tauros, and Kabuto.

JENNY: Growlithe, Pinsir, Cubone, Nidorino, Nidorina, and Kabutops.

SEYMOUR: Clefairy, Clefable, Wartortle, Doduo, Paras, and Omastar.

BILL: Once owned a Rattata but now is fused with it.

JESSIE: Arbok, Lickitung, and Kadabra.

JAMES: Weezing and Victreebel.

REIKO: Tentacruel and Kingler.

See ya' soon with another chapter! ;)


	21. INNdescribable Fun

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 21

INNdescribable Fun

In our last chapter, Cameron and friends fell down a deep pit, found some rare evolution stones called Medusa Stones, Zubat touched one of them and mutated into an huge Aerodactyl that allowed our heroes to fly over the ocean on their way to Cinnabar Island.

As they were flying, Cameron looked down and saw an island filled with hotels, funparks, and lots and lots of tourists. "Hey, is that Cinnabar down there?" he asked.

"No, I don't think so", said Jenny as she took out her map. "That looks like Seafoam Island to me."

"But it can't be", said Misty. "Seafoam Island is supposed to be deserted with only a few Pokemon roaming around."

"Not any more", explained Seymour. "About five years ago, the volcano on Cinnabar Island erupted causing all its citizens to vacate and move on out to Seafoam Island. Everyone knows about that."

"Not everyone", said Stella. "We've been stuck behind an electric wall for five years to know what's been going on in the outside world."

"Things sure have changed over the years", sighed Brock. "I don't even know who the hottest supermodels of today are!!!"

Stella was about to whack Brock but instead just kissed him. "If you'd like", she whispered in his ear, "I can be your private supermodel once we stop and rest somewhere." Brock started turning red, took out his canteen and poured it over his head to cool down. But however, some of the water got on Aerodactyl's back causing her to make a loud, "AERO!" and swerve to the side. Everyone quickly held on tight in a panic as Aero straightened herself out again.

"Careful Brock!" cried Misty. "This is not a Zubat we're riding on anymore. This is a stone skinned Aerodactyl. You of all people should know that water weakens rock Pokemon!"

"Oops, sorry Aero", said an embarrassed Brock as he took out some potion and applied it to Aero's wet spot.

"Are you all right now Aero?" Cameron asked his friend. "AERO!" said Aero in a tired voice. Cameron crawled up closer to her head and found her eyes looking pretty bloodshot.

"It looks like Aero needs some rest", said Cameron.

"I agree", said Bill. "We've been up in the air for over 8 hours."

"We should land on Seafoam to rest up", said Jenny. "We'll need to build up our strength when the time comes for us to face Mewtwo." Everyone sat there silently realizing that they were very close to one of their most important and probably most dangerous goals.

"Aero, take us down", said Cameron. "AERO!" said Aero as she flew down to the shore of Seafoam. When everyone got off of Aero's back. All sorts of tourists and local people in swimsuits and Hawaiian shirts quickly gathered around the group.

"Is that what I think it is?" gasped an old woman while pointing her wrinkly finger at the huge flying Pokemon.

"It is!" said the woman's husband. "It's an Aerodactyl! They haven't been around since prehistoric times. You should know about that Martha, you were there." Martha just bopped her husband with a huge mallet while his false teeth popped out of his mouth.

"Where do these ladies keep getting these mallets?" wondered Cameron.

Pretty soon, all of the tourists were marveling at the Aerodactyl while taking pictures of it with their flash cameras. All those blinding flashes started to annoy Aero while she covered her eyes with her wings. It also annoyed our heroes too.

"Hey mommy!" said a little boy. "Can I crawl into its mouth and play with its tongue?"

"Only if you want to take another bath tonight", said the mother while the flashes continued.

"Please, stop it everyone!" cried Cameron. "Can't you see you're frightening my Aerodactyl?"

"All right, move along people", said Jenny while jumping from one crowd to another like a grasshopper waving her arms like crazy. Just then Aero spread her wings and made a loud screeching noise. That caused everyone to run like crazy leaving our heroes alone.

"You okay Aero?" asked Cameron as he stroked her snout. "Aero!" replied Aero in a soft hoarse voice.

"You go ahead and rest now", said Cameron as he sucked Aero back into her Pokeball.

"Hold on a minute you people", called out an old man's voice. They turned around and found an old man with long blond hair who looked very familiar. "Was that an Aerodactyl I just saw with you?" he asked.

"Yes it is", said Cameron.

"You don't want to take a picture of it?" asked Jenny.

"Oh no", said the man. "I was just curious. It's just I've been on this Pokemon filled Earth for a long time and I've thought I've seen the rarest Pokemon in the world. But that marvelous flying stone creature really takes the carrot cake."

"Carrot cake?!" asked Bill. "Yech, I hate carrot cake. Give me cheese cake anyday!"

"And a talking Rattata too!" gasped the man as he picked up Bill and started playing with his face. "Are you people from Ripley's Believe it or Not?"

"I'll do something you won't believe if you don't put me down!" said an annoyed Bill. He jumped out of the man's hands, bounced off his head, and landed on the beach. Bill then felt something on his hind feet.

"AAAH! Some new kind of Pokemon's eating my feet!" cried Bill in a panic. "Get it off! Get it off! GET IT OFF!!"

"Relax you little pipsqueak", smiled the man. "It's only my wig!" and he bent down, yanked the wig off from Bill and dusted the sand off of it. Cameron, Misty, and Brock saw the bald man's head and they suddenly knew who this man was.

"Hey, you're Blaine", smiled Brock. "The Cinnabar Island gym leader!"

"Oh, so you've found me out", said Blaine as he put his wig back on. "I knew I should've put crazy glue on this thing."

"Blaine, don't you remember us?" asked Misty. "I'm Misty and this is Brock. Five years ago, we were your guests at your Big Riddle Inn in Cinnabar."

"Yes, it's all coming back to me", said Blaine. "There were three of you that day. You've solved every riddle I threw at you until you found my inn and my secretly hidden gym. That Ash kid was a pretty amazing trainer. Say, where is Ash?"

Misty was about to tear up again, but then stopped herself. "Hey, I think I'm getting better at this", she thought and then said. "He's not here with us right now. It's just me, Brock, and some new friends with us."

"Well, welcome to Seafoam Island everyone", smiled Blaine. "Would you all care to stay at my hotel, The Even Bigger Riddle Inn?"

"What happened to your first Inn?" asked Brock.

"Alas, it's gone forever", sighed Blaine. "Ever since the volcano on Cinnabar erupted, I was forced to abandon it. Ash is now spread all over every inch of Cinnabar Island."

"Someone splattered Ash all over the island?!" asked a shocked Misty imagining the bloody mess her friend was. She started crying out tears while our heroes pulled out their umbrellas.

"I think he's talking about the ash from the volcano", Cameron whispered into Misty's ear.

"Oops, sorry!" said Misty who suddenly stopped crying.

"Don't worry about me Misty", smiled Blaine as he handed her a Riddle Inn hanky. "Time heals all wounds and I've gotten over the loss of my first inn. Luckily, I had very good insurance and I was able to build me a bigger and better inn here on Seafoam", and he pointed east to the huge building with neon lights.

"That sure is beautiful", said Stella with neon stars in her eyes.

"And yes, there's an entire shopping mall inside the inn", said Blaine knowing the certain look on a young girl's eyes.

"But your old inn was near the volcano", said Misty. "How did you ever escape the eruption?"

"That was quite a story", said Blaine while going into a flashback. "I was sitting by the side of the volcano taking care of all my Pokemon getting them ready in case I might get some more customers and maybe some more challengers. Just then, I heard a loud boom. The volcano was about to erupt! I had no idea why it was doing this, but I had no time to think about that now. I found me and my Pokeballs about to fall into the piping hot lava. Just then, I was suddenly rescued by a huge flying Pokemon. It took me and my Pokemon away from my dear home of Cinnabar where I watched people fleeing the island in panic on ships, crafts, yachts, and on their water and flying Pokemon. Then the flying Pokemon brought me safely to the deserted island of Seafoam. I decided that this is where I'll start over with my new inn and gym. And five years later, the once empty Seafoam Island is now the hottest tourist trap in the world. And it doesn't even have a volcano!"

"That sure is a pretty amazing story", said Brock. "And you were lucky that flying Pokemon came along. I would've liked to see that."

"Yes, so would I", said Bill.

"Hmmm, maybe you will one day", said Blaine. "That's why I became so intrigued by your Aerodactyl, boy. In fact, I'd like you all to stay at my inn as long as you want free of charge. An Aerodactyl trainer is one of a kind in my book." And he winked at Cameron.

"Thank you", said Cameron blushing.

"We appreciate your offer", said Jenny. "We all need to rest up after all the journeying we've done. And we've got even bigger ones in the future too."

"And is it okay if I can challenge you for a VolcanoBadge while we're here?" asked Cameron.

"Only if you can find my newly hidden gym", laughed Blaine with a sneaky smile.

"You're gonna give us some riddles, aren't you?" asked Misty.

"I don't call my place a riddle inn for nothing", said Blaine. "And here it is. My gym is located where you find an apple you never eat. To go there, just remove the thing that always stops!"

"Got all that", said Seymour as he typed it into a mini-computer.

"And I'm gonna have to ask you to put that thing away", said Blaine. "Puzzle solving devices are against the rules at the Riddle Inn." And he took out a small device, pointed it at Seymour's computer, and erased the words he just typed up.

"Other than that, do what ever you can to enjoy your stay at the Even Bigger Riddle Inn", smiled Blaine. "Just don't try to steal the bathroom towels when you leave."

As they all followed Blaine to his inn, a huge Kingler had washed up on shore the minute they left. And on it was a beautiful female ninja wringing out her black braid in back. (WOW! TRY SAYING THAT FIVE TIMES FAST!) She saw the huge inn they were all headed to and started to smile.

"Like the Diglett that enjoys abandoned subways with discarded food samples. I believe that I'm going to enjoy this place", smiled Reiko as she pulled a black swimsuit out from nowhere.

* * * * * *

That evening, our heroes were just having the time of their lives at Blaine's inn. Stella was dragging Brock all over the indoor mall buying up clothes and handing them to Brock so he could carry them. "I've heard this could happen when you finally get a girlfriend, but I never believed those stories were true", thought Brock as he tried to catch up with Stella while balancing all the boxes and bags he was carrying.

* * * * * *

Seymour, dressed in a black tux and Jenny dressed in a blue spaghetti strap gown with a police badge were at a fancy table about to have a romantic dinner. They looked at their menus and discovered all the food items were in riddles.

"What exactly is a What Came First Sandwich?" Seymour asked the waiter.

"This is a riddle inn", said the waiter in a snooty French accent. "Figure it out for yourself!"

"I hope it's not an egg sandwich", thought Seymour, "I break out in hives when I eat an egg!" Jenny just secretly giggled for Seymour looked cute when he sweats.

* * * * * *

Misty was lying on a deck chair in her red bikini and sunglasses under a huge sunlamp. She suddenly felt a tap on her bare arm. She looked down and found Psyduck smiling at her while holding a Hungry-Hungry Hypnos board game.

"No Psyduck, I'm not in the mood to play with you right now", sighed Misty. "Why don't you go and play with your little Pokepals. I've got five years of tanning to make up for!"

"Psy", sighed Psyduck as he left Misty while dragging the game behind him. "She was a lot nicer when she was all big and rocky." He thought.

Psyduck had pushed open a small door and joined all the other Pokemon who were playing in a huge indoor playground made just for Pokemon. Some were sliding down Onix's back. Donphan was in the pool squirting water on all the water Pokemon, while the others were having fun on the huge jungle gym. Especially Buzz who had just completed 2,000 chin ups.

"Hey Golem, how about giving me a push please?" called out Bill who was sitting on a swing.

"Golem", said Golem as he gave Bill a big hard push. The swing went spinning around like crazy until it got tangled up at the top bar. Golem looked up and found Bill gone. "Could those stories about Pokemon swinging over the bar be true?" wondered Golem.

"A little help here?" called out Bill's voice. Golem looked around for him unknowing that Bill was stuck between two stones in Golem's rocky back.

Sandy was in the sandbox making a sculpture of a female Sandshrew. He looked at it with sly eyes and said. "Sandshreeeew!" in a sexy voice. The statue just fell to pieces in response to Sandy's pick up line. "Shrew", grumbled Sandy snapping his claws. He then looked out the outside window and found Cameron wearing multi-colored Bermuda shorts and holding a towel in his hand. Sandy stepped outside and approached his master wondering what he was gonna do.

"Hi Sandy", smiled Cameron. "Having fun so far?"

"Shrew", smiled Sandy.

"I'm just going off to relax in the hot tub over there", said Cameron. "Would you like to join me?"

"Shrew, shrew!" said Sandy shaking his head no.

"Oh yeah, I forgot", said Cameron blushing. "You and water are not really the best of friends. Sorry Sandy."

"Shrew", smiled Sandy showing that Cameron was forgiven and then went back to the playground to continue playing with his Pokefriends.

* * * * * *

Cameron just loved the feel of the warm bubbles dancing around in the hot tub he was sitting in. And it felt even relaxing as he stared up at the starlit night sky. "I think I'm gonna love living in this world from now on", he sighed. But then he frowned when the thought of Mewtwo entered his head and wondered if his new life might end the minute they come face to face with that monster.

"I'd better get my mind off of that right now", said Cameron while shaking his head. "I'm here to relax. I'll just think about Blaine's riddle. Let's see. His gym is located where you find an apple you never eat. Could that be The Big Apple? That can't be. I bet New York's miles away from Seafoam and I wonder if New York even exists in this world. And to go to this gym, I have to find the thing that always stops. Do I have to remove a nearby stop sign from a road? No, Jenny would not like that. She'd probably have me thrown in jail along with Blaine for giving me that idea. Ow, brain strain!" and he took off his glasses and started rubbing his head and his eyes.

Cameron then saw a blurry sexy figure standing at the edge of the tub. He quickly put on his glasses and saw it was Reiko dressed in a black bikini. "Is there room in this tub for one more?" she smiled while bowing to him. Cameron became a little nervous for she looked like she was bowing a little too low for him.

"Are Jessie and James here with you?" he asked.

"No, they're back at the palace recovering from a bad fall", said Reiko as she stepped into the tub and sat down in front of Cameron. "And I told them that I'd continue the mission all alone."

"So do you think you can possibly capture all of us at the same time?" asked Cameron, "Not that I'm doubting your ninja skills."

"No, I do not want to do that", said Reiko seriously. "Oh Cameron-san. Like the Venomoth that gets mesmerized by a brand new light bulb. I have truly seen the light. I now see how evil and unremorseful Team Rocket can be. I want to be on your side Cameron-san." And she slowly clasped onto his wet wrinkly hand.

"You really mean that?" asked Cameron with a smile. "Wow, I'm really glad you're gonna be on our side now. I can't wait to tell the others."

"No, you cannot do that", said Reiko seriously. "Officer Jenny is sure to handcuff me and send me to the nearest jail after all those times I escaped her wrath. I'll help you, but I need to stay out of the other's sights for a while."

"I'm sure if I reason with Jenny, you can join our group without getting cuffed at all", said Cameron. Just as Reiko was about to speak, she noticed the scar marks on Cameron's chest from that Sandslash incident back at her old home.

"Those scars!" said Reiko as she placed her fingers on his chest. "This is my fault you have them. If I hadn't brought those Rockets into my own family's gym, this wouldn't've happened to you." And a tear ran down her face.

"Please don't blame yourself Reiko", said Cameron wiping away her tear with his wet finger. "You were the one who treated my wounds. And I kind of wished I was awake when you did." And he winked at her.

"Cameron-san", sighed Reiko as the two gazed at each other while they felt the water getting even hotter. Just as their lips were about to touch, a voice called out. "Hey Cameron!"

"Officer Jenny?" asked Cameron as he turned around and found Jenny in her strapless blue and white striped swimsuit standing at the edge of the tub. He then turned around and found Reiko gone.

"Mind if I join you?" asked Jenny as she stepped into the tub with him.

"Uh, sure, go right ahead", said Cameron trying to maintain a smile and was thankful that Reiko was gone just in time. "She sure is a quick ninja", he thought. "Why aren't you with Seymour?" he then asked Jenny.

"Seymour's sleeping peacefully right now." Said Jenny. "He put his brain through a mighty workout trying to figure out every riddle in this inn. You should've seen the trouble he went through just trying to figure out the clue to get the mens' room door open. I put him to bed and decided to spend the rest of the night relaxing under the stars."

"You really do take good care of Seymour, don't you?" smiled Cameron.

"Yes, I've never met a guy like him before", sighed Jenny. "You'll know what that's like one day too."

"I think I already have", sighed Cameron.

"You're not thinking about that dishonest Rocket Reiko are you?" she said sternly. "Listen Cameron, I know Reiko does seem to care about you a lot. But I suggest it's not a good idea to have a romantic relationship with a criminal. After all, she seems to be more loyal to Team Rocket than she is to you."

"But suppose if Reiko wanted to change and join with us?" asked Cameron. "Would that be okay with you?"

"Cameron, please understand that once I find that Rocket girl in my presence, I'm going to have to cuff her. After all, she did ruin my original van, tried to help Team Rocket capture us, take Brock's family hostage, and try to take hostage an entire ferry. No matter what, it's my duty to arrest all Rockets, even Reiko. I'm sorry Cameron."

Cameron suddenly saw a large bubble emerge from the little bubbles. He pretended to drop his glasses and ducked his head into the water. There he found Reiko under the water holding her breath like crazy. And it looked like she was about to croak if Jenny didn't leave soon.

Cameron pulled his head out of the water and tried to maintain a smile at Jenny who had no idea that her arrestee was in the same tub with them. Cameron tried to think of something fast and was thankful he found something. "Uh, Jenny", asked Cameron, "Isn't that your badge pinned to your bathing suit?"

"Why yes it is" said Jenny as she took off the badge and tried to dry it off with a towel. "I just can't seem to stop pinning this thing no matter where I go or what I wear. Thank you for pointing that out to me Cameron. If this badge had rusted in the water, the head Jenny would take it away from me for good. I'd better go put this back in my room. Be right back." And Jenny got out of the tub, dried herself off and left.

"Okay Reiko, she's gone", said Cameron as he pulled her arm bringing her up to the surface. Reiko was breathing like crazy while clutching her chest. "Are you all right Reiko?" he asked her.

"But of course", said Reiko proudly. "I was imagining myself like the Vaporeon that uses acid armor to blend in with clear blue water. Now I think I had better leave before Officer Jenny finds me and goes back for her badge." She was about to step out of the tub, until she felt something caught her toe. She managed to yank it out and found out it was the stopper. Suddenly, all the water started going down the drain leaving only Cameron and Reiko standing there high and dry.

"That's a pretty fast drain", said Cameron. "Blaine must use a powerful detergent in his pools." Suddenly the tub floor started to slowly split open. Reiko grabbed Cameron's shoulders and quickly pulled him out of the tub. There they saw a stone stairway leading down somewhere.

"To go to the gym, you first have to find the thing that always stops", said Cameron as he saw the stopper still stuck on Reiko's toe. "Reiko! You did it!" smiled Cameron as he hugged her and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"I do not know what kind of damage I just did", said Reiko puzzled.  
"But can you tell me so I can do it again?"

"Hey Cameron, are you still there?" called out Jenny's voice.

"Uh, oh", said Reiko, "That's my cue to depart." And she kissed Cameron and did a huge flip over a nearby wall.

"What in the world just happened to the tub?!" gasped Jenny as she gazed at the hot tub that was now replaced by a stairway. Cameron just smiled as he looked down and saw the stopper that his little ninja pulled and helped him solve part of Blaine's riddle.

* * * * * *

Cameron and Jenny quickly got dressed and gathered all their friends and Pokemon to show them the huge stairway that could lead to Blaine's hidden gym. "I never would've expected to find something like this in a hotel hot tub", said Seymour who was now feeling a lot better after a good sleep.

"Do you think it could lead to Blaine's gym?" asked Stella.

"Only one way to find out", said Brock. "Come on everyone and you can lead Cameron since you found it." And Cameron lead the way while his other six friends followed him down.

"You don't think these stairs could lead us to another volcano like last time?" asked Misty.

"Probably not", said Brock. "These stairs look like they're leading straight down."

"You don't suppose we're all going to the center of the Earth, do you?" asked Stella.

"Nyahhh, that can't possibly happen", laughed Bill.

Cameron suddenly remembered the first part of Blaine's riddle. "The gym is located where you find an apple you never eat. And no one eats apple cores. Could that mean the Earth's core?"

* * * * * *

They seemed to have walked down for quite a few hours until finally they came to a huge metal door. "Just like in Blaine's old volcano gym", said Brock.

Cameron felt the door and it seemed pretty hot. "I'm not sure if I'm gonna like what's behind this door", he thought.

"And I don't think we should open this door", said Jenny. "There might be a fire behind it waiting to come out and fry us."

"No problem", said Misty as she released all six of her water Pokemon. "All right guys" she said. "We're gonna open this door and I need all of you to spray your water guns if a fire does charge out of it." All of Misty's Pokemon nodded as Cameron opened the door. Luckily for them, there was no fire in front of the door. "Looks like you guys didn't have to waste any of your water", smiled Misty but then frowned for Psyduck was squirting his water all over the place like a fountain.

Our heroes stepped through the door and they were surprised to find where they were. They were in a huge blazing inferno with red stone walls. They looked below a ledge and found a pool of molten lava with a huge stone slab that was as big as a gym floor.

"I can't believe it!" gasped Bill. "We are in the Earth's core!"

Cameron suddenly became nervous. He was hoping that they all didn't go to the bad place. Suddenly, a burst of smoke appeared from the ledge on the other side of the lava and there appeared a devil with a red face and horns, pointy ears, a red tuxedo with a forked tail while holding a pitchfork.

"Welcome to your eternal torment you seven new arrivals!" said the devil in a creepy voice. Everyone held each other in fear. "PSYKE!" said the demon as he pulled off his mask. Everyone became relieved that it was really Blaine all along. "Sorry about that", he laughed. "It's just that I'll always be a joker at heart."

"Are we actually in the Earth's core?" asked Cameron.

"So you've solved my riddle, eh?" smiled Blaine. "But don't worry. This isn't the real Earth's core. No one can survive the intense heat down there. This is just a little underground inferno I had constructed. And yes, that's real lava down there. Just something to make the gym matches here more gripping. Now who wants to battle me for a VolcanoBadge? 3 Pokemon each, no time limit?"

"I would", said Cameron as he stepped up to the ledge, but not too far.

"You'd better be careful Cameron", said Brock. "Battling on a sea of lava could mean serious burns for your Pokemon."

"Not to mention less Pokemon", said Misty.

"All right Cameron", said Blaine as he took out his first Pokeball. "I'll start out with Rapidash!" and he released his first Pokemon on the stone floor. It was a unicorn with a mane and tail made out of pure fire.

"Slowking, I choose you", said Cameron as he released Slowie onto the other side of the floor.

"So, another kid thinks he can stop my fire types with a water type", laughed Blaine. "Rapidash, give him your stomp attack!"

"Slowie, use your water gun!" commanded Cameron. Slowie was about to take a deep breath and release his water gun, but he wasn't fast enough against the speedy Rapidash. The huge horse managed to stomp poor Slowie flat into his Shellder crown. "SLOWIE!" cried Cameron as he saw his Slowking who was nothing but a crown and two cute feet dancing around.

"That wasn't really smart sending the world's slowest Pokemon to battle the world's fastest", scoffed Blaine. "Maybe I should have Rapidash stomp some sense into you instead. HA HA HA!"

Cameron quickly sucked Slowie back into his ball and said. "I'm sorry Slowie, but my next Pokemon will avenge you though. Donphan, I choose you!" and his huge elephant suddenly landed with a thud on the stone floor almost causing Rapidash to lose its balance.

"Breaking out the heavy artillery, eh?" smiled Blaine. "Not that I don't blame you though. Rapidash, give it your ember attack!" Rapidash started waving its fiery tail around sending little embers onto Donnie's tough hard skin.

"Quick Donnie! Stop, drop, and roll!" commanded Cameron. Donnie then rolled up into his tire form and started rolling around the floor putting out the fire on his skin along with the natural fire on Rapidash's body. Donnie then started rolling non-stop all over Rapidash until it looked like a horse skin rug.

"Nothing puts out a fire like the classic stop, drop, and roll method", smiled Cameron. Blaine sourly pulled the flattened Rapidash back into its ball and then pulled out another one.

"So you think you can outclever the riddlemaster, eh?" said Blaine now smiling. "Let's see how your Donphan does against Magmar!" and he released a dwarf like Pokemon that was made of fire and lava. "MAGMAR", it said in a hot steamy voice.

"That's Blaine's strongest Pokemon." Said Misty. "I was sure he'd save that one for last."

"Unless he has a Pokemon even stronger than Magmar saved up", said Brock.

"Donnie, use your tusk attack!" commanded Cameron. Donnie trumpeted and started to charge at the fiery beast.

"Magmar, smog attack now!" said Blaine. Magmar sprayed a huge smog cloud at the charging Donphan. Donnie suddenly stopped and started coughing for its long trunk was very sensitive to smog.

"Okay Magmar, give it your flamethrower attack!" said Blaine. Magmar took a deep breath and started spraying out a powerful jet of fire at Donnie pushing him right off the floor and into the hot lava below.

"No, Donnie!" cried Cameron as he carelessly leaned over, but was caught by Brock just in time. Everyone silently looked down into the sea of lava wondering if the tough Donnie was tough enough to handle this much hotness. Suddenly a burst of lava shot out and Donnie landed back on the floor with an even louder thud causing Magmar to almost fall down.

"All right Donnie!" said a relieved Cameron.

"So your Donphan is tough against the hottest elements", said Blaine. "Let's see if it can handle my hot heavy hitter. Magmar, fire punch now!"

"MAGMAR!" said Magmar as it made a huge fiery fist and was getting ready to give Donnie a black-charred eye.

"Donnie, finish it off with your earthquake attack!" said Cameron. Donnie trumpeted real loud and started stomping down many times causing the stone floor to crumble apart. Magmar stopped as the floor suddenly collapsed into the lava causing poor Magmar to hit its head against a floating slab of rock. When the smoke cleared. They found an unconscious Magmar floating stomach up on the lava while Donnie was standing on what was left of the floor trumpeting proudly.

"That's showing 'em Donnie", said Cameron proudly.

"I guess it's time I release my secret weapon", said Blaine as he called back Magmar and released his final Pokemon. Everyone was surprised when they saw what it was. It was a huge orange dragon with very large wings that allowed it to hover over the lava. Cameron quickly aimed his Pokedex at the magnificent looking beast.

"DRAGONITE: The evolved form of Dragonair", replied Dexeena. "A rarely seen marine Pokemon. Its intelligence is said to match that of humans."

"I can't believe it", gasped Bill. "IT'S YOU!!!" Bill started flashbacking six years ago when he, Ash, Misty, and Brock were at his lighthouse. They discovered the shadow of a huge never before seen Pokemon coming their way. Just as they were about to find out what it was, Team Rocket started firing missiles at the mysterious creature chasing it away. "I thought I'd never see you again my mysterious friend." Whispered Bill.

"That's right folks", said Blaine proudly. "This Dragonite was the same flying Pokemon that saved me from that erupting volcano. Now its my most strongest champion."

"Okay Donnie", said Cameron, "Use your... uh, oh!" Cameron suddenly realized that when Donnie made the stone floor crumble, all that was left of it was a tiny slab that was barely big enough to support Donnie which meant he couldn't move around to battle.

"Looks like you put your Pokemon in a tight corner", laughed Blaine. "Dragonite, show 'em your dragonrage attack!"

"DRAAAAGGGG!" howled Dragonite as it summoned a huge typhoon causing Donnie to get sucked in and twirled all over the place while hitting the walls.

"Donnie return!" shouted Cameron as he tried to pull Donnie back in, but couldn't for the Pokeball's beam kept missing Donnie. It took him a whole minute but Cameron finally managed to catch Donnie while Dragonite ceased its dragonrage.

"You got one Pokemon left to use", laughed Blaine. "It better be your best one!"

"Aerodactyl, I choose you!" said a very determined Cameron and Aero appeared hovering right in front of Dragonite.

"Excellent", smiled Blaine. "A battle between two rare Pokemon. I just hope Dragonite won't make your Aerodactyl too extinct. Dragonite, hydro pump now!" Dragonite started squirting out a powerful bolt of water at the Aerodactyl.

"Aero, fly now!" shouted Cameron. Aero flew very fast and high up so that the hydro pump couldn't touch her.

"All right Dragonite", said Blaine. "Use your fire blast now!" Dragonite started to breathe out a huge clump of fire at Aero.

"Quick Aero", said Cameron. "Blow it away with a whirlwind!" Aero quickly flapped her wings hard and fast sending the fire right into Dragonite's face causing it to roar and rub its eyes. "Now finish it off with hyper beam", commanded Cameron. "AERO!" shouted Aero as she started to charge herself up.

"Quick Dragonite!" shouted a now nervous Blaine. "Use your hyper beam before that bird uses its!"

"DRAGG!" said Dragonite as it finished rubbing its eyes and charged itself up as well. Both Aero and Dragonite had launched their hyper beams at the same time causing quite a scene. Both beams were trying hard to push at each other while sparks were flying all over the place.

"This is amazing", gasped Seymour as he took out a pad and pencil. "I'm witnessing an actual hyper beam collision. For years us scientists have been pondering what would happen if two hyper beams collide!"

And the result was a big explosion that caused both Pokemon to get blown back. Aero landed on the same ledge our heroes were on. "Aero, are you all right?" asked Cameron.

"Aero!" said Aero with a big toothy smile showing that she was a little battered but still awake.

But Dragonite wasn't looking so hot. It landed out cold on the opposite side of the ledge where Blaine was. In fact it landed right on top of Blaine. He managed to crawl out from under Dragonite's scaly body and dusted himself off. "Well Cameron", he said, "It looks like you've managed to beat my 3 best Pokemon. Congratulations. Let's all head back to the surface so we can get our Pokemon healed by Nurse Joy and my back healed by my chiropractor. Oooh!"

* * * * * *

Our heroes were now in the Riddle Inn Pokemon center where Nurse Joy was healing all the Pokemon that fought hard today. Joy had to get about 15 stretchers to support Aero. "Wow, I bet I'm the first Joy in my family to actually treat an Aerodactyl." Said Joy as she fed Aero some vitamins. "I wonder if I can get a picture of me next to her."

Blaine had approached Cameron and smiled at him. "Are you going to present me with a badge for beating you?" asked Cameron.

"But first, you'll have to answer me one last riddle", smiled Blaine. "What would you do if I just decide to give you no badge?"

"No badge?!!" gasped Cameron disappointed. "But I beat all your Pokemon fair and square, I deserve that VolcanoBadge. Wait a minute. Would you give me it if I added the letters V-O-L-C and A to no badge?"

"Bingo!" laughed Blaine as he handed Cameron a badge that was in the shape of fire. "Congratulations you little smarty-pants. The VolcanoBadge is yours."

"Thank you", smiled Cameron as he showed his seventh badge to his friends. "Look everyone. I won a VolcanoBadge!"

"Yes, you and your remarkable Aerodactyl truly earned it", said Blaine. "I also have something for Aero as well. I've noticed that you don't have a fire Pokemon on your team, so I'd like you to program this into her head." And he handed Cameron a small device that said TM 38.

"TM 38?" said Cameron excitedly. "I've heard of this. This is fire blast! Thank you Blaine. This'll be so cool!"

"You mean hot don't you?" Blaine corrected him. As soon as Aero was 100 percent healed, Cameron took her outside and aimed the fire blast device onto her head.

"Do you know how to use fire blast now Aero?" Cameron asked her.

"AERO!" said Aero as she saw the same group of tourists coming up to take some more annoying pictures of her. Aero just smiled and breathed a clump of fire at all the tourists chasing them away.

"You really shouldn't've done that to those people", scolded Cameron. "But I'm kind of glad you did though. They were annoying."

"Aero!" said Aero winking.

* * * * * *

The next day, our heroes were back on Aero's back ready to take off for Cinnabar Island. "So you're actually going to Cinnabar, aren't you?" asked Blaine.

"Yes", said Jenny. "We're on a mission and we have to get there no matter what cost."

"Well I hope my fire blast TM will come in handy there", said Blaine.

"Thanks again", said Cameron, "And thank you for showing us all a great time in you inn."

"And when and if I become human again", said Bill. "Can I come back to study your Dragonite? I'd like to get know my old friend better as a human."

"Sure you can", smiled Blaine. "My Dragonite will still be here. They've been known to live for 1000 years."

"Let's just hope it wasn't Dragonite's 999th birthday this year", said Stella.

"So long everyone", smiled Blaine as he waved goodbye to the group who were flying away on Aero while waving back to him.

* * * * * *

Reiko was quickly following our heroes surfing on Tentacruel's back. "I'm just grateful that Jessie, James, and Meowth hasn't found out I helped them along the way." She sighed.

* * * * * *

Back at the Rocketville Palace, Meowth was watching a huge monitor and found something extremely shocking. "Wait'll Queen Jessie finds out the truth about her so-called bootlicker!" he snickered.

TO BE CONTINUED

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Well it looks like Cameron now has 7 badges and they're all on their way non-stop to Cinnabar to face the mysterious Mewtwo. Will they defeat him and get Ash back? And what did Meowth discover on that monitor of his? Stay tuned to find out?


	22. The Meeting of the Mind

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 22

The Meeting of the Mind

"What is it Meowth?" moaned Jessie as she entered a room covered with bandages while leaning on a crutch.

"Yeah, I was in the middle of a wonderful dream where I wasn't hurt", whined James who was also covered with bandages and was in a wheelchair with an IV tube in his mouth.

"James!" groaned Jessie. "You're supposed to stick that thing in your arm. Not your mouth!"

"I can't help it", smiled James, "This stuff tastes like ginger ale!" and he started to happily slurp it some more.

"What is it you want to show us Meowth?" groaned Jessie. "We want to get back to our beds soon so we can recover and become feared tyrants once again."

"It's about your little so-called loyal intern Reiko", smiled Meowth.

"What are you saying?!" said Jessie in an angry voice. "Reiko would never betray little old me! I've trained her too well."

"You don't believe me, eh?" smiled Meowth. "Then I can't wait to see the look on your face when I show you this video!"

"How could you've taped Reiko's every move?" asked James.

"I just placed a hidden micro-camera on her boot when you and I were traveling with her Jimmy", smiled Meowth. "I figured that that hot little Japanese tamale would be trouble."

"Prepare for troub... No, wait. We actually don't have time for that", said Jessie. "Just show us this tape and I can prove to you that our trustworthy Reiko has been doing her job so I can rub it in your fur-  
shedding face."

"Okie-dokie", said Meowth as he popped the tape into the monitor and played it. First they saw Meowth in a huge golden circle with MEOWTH in big gold letters underneath him. He was trying to roar like a lion, but all he could do were squeaky Meowths. "Meeeeowth, uh, Meowww, uh, er, Roarmeowth! Oh, just start the film already!" he grumbled.

Meowth had fast fowarded the parts when he and his teammates were spending time with Reiko and slowed it down to the times when she wasn't with them. First they saw Reiko and her encounter with Cameron alone on Machoke Island where the Machokes took them prisoner and it looked like they were having a romantic moment in their cell. Then they saw where Team Rocket had captured the rebels in the Celadon game center and Reiko went over to the tied up Cameron and secretly kissed him. Then they saw scenes where Reiko was helping our heroes catch all those dark Pokemon, helping them escape the cage they dropped on them by sticking a key into Cameron's glasses. They even saw where Reiko was passionately treating Cameron's injuries at the Fuchsia gym and how she saved him from those killer Pokemon in the Safari Zone.

"You mean Reiko's fallen for that four-eyed twerp?" gasped James.

"No, I refuse to believe that!" grumbled Jessie who was turning red in the face, even redder than her hair. "I am much more important to her than that scrawny little brat!"

"Well then get set for the grand finale!" smiled Meowth as he fast fowarded to where Reiko secretly threw one of her metal stars at the land mine they had buried for our heroes causing them all to fall to their doom.

"It's Reiko's fault we look like this", whined James as he looked at his bandaged self. "Jessie, what do you think of this? Jessie?!" Jessie didn't say a thing. She was boiling mad. In fact, she became so enraged that she pumped herself up and broke free from her bandages making her 100 percent healed.

"Wow", said Meowth. "I knew she'd be mad, but not mad enough to make herself heal real fast."

"Where is she headed now?" asked Jessie in a quiet voice.

"Cinnabar Island", said Meowth nervously.

"Come on James", she grumbled. "We've got a little traitor to set straight!"

"But I'm not fully healed yet!" whined James. Jessie just silently pinched the side of James's neck and he yelped and immediately jumped out of his wheelchair all healed as well.

"Happy now?!" grumbled Jessie.

"I'm all better", said James. "But what did you just do to me?"

"We've got a mission", said Jessie, "There's no time to explain how I did it."

"Mainly because the writer doesn't know either", laughed Meowth.

* * * * * *

Aerodactyl had finally flown our heroes to Cinnabar Island. "Well here it is everyone", said Jenny quietly. "Cinnabar Island. The place where Mewtwo is supposedly residing."

"Uh, huh", said everyone for none of them had said a word throughout their whole flight from Seafoam to Cinnabar. They were thinking about the dangers that lie waiting for them the minute they come face to psychic face with Mewtwo. They all looked at the huge island. It had a large volcano and every inch of the surface was covered with ash. Just like Blaine had said.

"I don't see how someone like Mewtwo would want to live in a place like this", said Stella. "There's not one sign of any place that's livable."

"Look down there", said Cameron as he pointed to what looked like a mansion. It was the only spot on the island that wasn't covered with ash.

"That must be Mewtwo's hideout", said Brock. "Sabrina said that Mewtwo hides out in an abandoned mansion on Cinnabar."

"It must've used its psychic powers to protect itself and the mansion from that erupting volcano", said Seymour. "Very fascinating!"

"Though I find all Pokemon in the world delightful and want to get to know each and every one of them", said Bill. "I believe that Mewtwo will be my only exception."

"Well, we'd better land so we can defeat this monster and save Ash", said Jenny. "Cameron, have Aero take us down."

"You heard her Aero", smiled Cameron as he patted his Pokemon's head. "Take us down in front of that mansion over there."

"Aero!" said Aero as she started to come in for a landing.

"Hold on Ash", whispered Misty. "Your friends are on the way to save you!"

* * * * * *

Cameron had pulled Aero back into her ball and now our heroes were slowly walking up to the huge spooky mansion. "You got Slowking with you all ready?" Jenny asked Cameron.

"Right here." said Cameron holding Slowie's Pokeball in his right hand. "I sure hope your new mindzero attack will help us defeat Mewtwo, Slowie. Whatever that thing does."

"That was awfully nice of Sabrina to program it into Slowie's head", said Seymour. "I just can't wait to see what it does!" and he excitedly took out his pad and pencil ready to jot down the secret power of mindzero.

"I wonder if it'll turn Mewtwo into a doll", wondered Misty nervously. "Including everyone who's around it!"

Soon they all had passed the front step and were standing in front of the huge door with a golden knocker that was being held in the mouth of a golden Zubat. "Do you think we should knock?" asked Cameron.

"No, I think we should just sneak in quietly", whispered Jenny. "We officers normally don't like breaking and entering, but I think it'd be safer if Mewtwo didn't know we'd be approaching him."

"Uh, I think we're a little too late, cause I already knocked!" said Stella sheepishly.

"WHAAAT!" shouted everyone. But no one could hear each other's screams cause a loud booming voice came from the door. "WHO JUST KNOCKED ON MY KNOCKER?!" it shouted.

"Uh, it was me", said Stella nervously.

"I'm Officer Jenny from the Pallet police", said Jenny. "We believe this mansion might be the home of the dangerous Pokemon Mewtwo. Would you know anything about it?"

"Hmmmm", said the voice that became much quieter. "I believe I can help you vict..., I mean, fine people out. Please step inside." The door suddenly flew open and our heroes stepped inside. Then the front door closed itself.

* * * * * *

Reiko had just set foot on the island right after our heroes had entered the mansion. She looked at all the ash that surrounded the entire place except for the area around the mansion. "This looks like a lot of trouble!" she said.

"Did you say trouble?!" called out a familiar angry voice.

"Queen Jessie?" asked Reiko surprised.

"And your king makes us double!" said another familiar voice. Then a smokebomb went off and Reiko saw two familiar figures standing in the darkness.

Jessie: "To protect ourselves from rotten traitors!"  
James: "To punish those who are monarch haters!"  
Jessie: "To denounce the evils of turncoat rats!"  
James: "To extend our fists to ungrateful brats!"  
Jessie: "Queen Jessie!"  
James: "King James!"  
Jessie: "Royal Rockets blasting off from our cozy castle!"  
James: "Just to do away with you mutinous hassle!"

"LICKIE!" shouted Lickitung as it stuck its long tongue out from the smoke and quickly tied up Reiko. When the smoke cleared, she saw her King and Queen all healed and looking very angry.

"Uh, greetings my loyal monarchs", said Reiko calmly. "I am so glad to see you're looking all better again."

"Can the sucking up Reiko!" shouted Jessie. "It just hurts me to know that all that shameless groveling you've done was all insincere!"

"I just knew you were trouble from the very beginning", shouted James,

"Oh Reiko", wailed Jessie, "Why did you have to go and do this?! And over a blonde haired little twerp too! I'd thought you'd at least have better taste than that! If it were Mel Gibson I could understand, but some little bony runt named Cameron Fusterman?!"

"Do not call Cameron-san that!" shouted an angry tear-filled Reiko. "He wasn't the one who forced me to love and worship him and to agree with everything he says! Like you made me to. All this time I've been doing your evil and demeaning deeds because I felt like I had no future, no purpose in my life. All that changed when I met that wonderful boy. I now want to donate my life to helping Cameron-san and his friends!"

"And just what about your so-called ninja's oath?!" said Jessie angrily. "Don't tell me you're gonna actually break it and disgrace your family's honor forever?!"

"I've already disgraced my family by running away and joining the likes of you in the first place!" scowled Reiko. "Just this once, I'm going to forget my ninja's honor and do what's right in my heart!"

"That was so beautiful!" whined James while blowing into a hanky. "Did you know that was the first time you said something long and heartfelt without using one of your corny metaphors?"

"Well you won't be saying any more metaphors when I get through with you!" shouted Jessie. "But I'll lessen the tortures I have planned for you if you'll tell me where the rebels are heading right now."

"Never!" shouted Reiko. "I will no longer do anything that'll lead you to the destruction of Cameron-san. That is my new ninja's oath. And I do not plan on breaking this one!"

"I see", said Jessie calmly. "I guess this means we get to go back to our cozy palace where James and I get to sit on comfy beds while we put you on an uncomfy iron maiden."

"Since when did we get robot maids?" asked James. "Will they be sassy like the one on the Jetsons?" Jessie just silently bonked James with her mallet.

Reiko just smiled down at the Lickitung that had her wrapped up wet and tight. She managed to pull a metal star out of her pocket and stuck it on the tongue. Lickie yelped and let go of Reiko causing her to land on the sand. "Kingler, I choose you!" shouted Reiko as she released her Kingler who sharpened its claws ready to defend its beloved master.

"Lickie, how could you let her do this to you?" shouted Jessie as she quickly applied a bandage to Lickie's boo-boo. "Now get it with your lick attack!"

"Lickie!" shouted an angry Lickie as it fired its tongue at Kingler. "Kingler, vicegrip now!" shouted Reiko. Kingler had quickly grabbed onto Lickie's tongue while Lickie was trying its best to pull it out of the huge crab's grip.

"Quick Lick", smiled Jessie. "Show that crab your new thunderbolt attack!"

"Thunderbolt?!" gasped Reiko. Lickie started to charge itself up and sent a current of electricity through its tongue and right into Kingler's wet body causing it to let go and faint.

"Kingler!" cried Reiko as she pulled her poor electrified Kingler back into its Pokeball.

"Score one for the tongue!" smiled Jessie and James as they danced around while holding paper fans with Rs on them.

"Tentacruel, I choose you this time!" shouted a desperate Reiko. "Tentacruel!" said the huge squid.

"Lickie, give it another thunderbolt!" commanded Jessie.

"Quick Tentacruel, create a barrier!" commanded Reiko.

Lickitung released a thunderbolt at Reiko and Tentacruel, but it didn't affect them for Tentacruel had created an invisible barrier protecting them from the bolt.

"Okay Tentacruel, use your acid attack", said Reiko. Tentacruel fired some acid at Lickitung who managed to step out of the way.

"Oh thank badness", said Jessie relieved that her Lickitung didn't get hit. But unfortunately Lickie eyed the puddle of acid on the ground and thought it was dark chocolate. It started slurping it up and then fell to the ground holding its stomach making groaning noises.

"Lickie, return", moaned Jessie as she pulled her poisoned Pokemon back into its ball. "I bet that was even harder on its poor huge tastebuds." She sighed.

"My turn up to bat", smiled James as he took out a Pokeball. "Go Victreebel!"

"No, wait!" shouted Jessie as she tackled James onto the ground while holding his wrist. "Haven't you learned from these past five years that your Victreebel always tries to eat you whenever you release it?!"

"But not today", smiled James. "I just mixed some Pokemon repel potion in with my hair gel so Vic won't dare try to eat its beloved master. Watch!" and he released his Victreebel. The huge plant was about to chomp on James until it sniffed his smiling face and then backed away from the repel potion that only a Pokemon can't stand.

"See, what did I tell you?" said James proudly. "Uh, Jessie?" asked James. He opened his eyes and found his Victreebel chomping on Jessie's head instead.

"Get me out of this smelly fly trap!" shouted Jessie from inside the plant's mouth. "Oops, sorry Jessie", said James as he quickly yanked Victreebel off of Jessie's head and sat it in front of Reiko and Tentacruel.

"Okay Victreebel, use your razor leaf on that kid and her squid", said James. Victreebel made a loud scream and started firing razor sharp leaves at the barrier Tentacruel had just created. Reiko and Tentacruel were still protected, but it looked like the barrier was cracking. "Now finish it off with a solarbeam!" said James. Victreebel started gathering sunlight into its huge body.

"Uh, oh", gasped Reiko. "Quick Tentacruel, return!" But it was too late. Before she could recall her Tentacruel, Victreebel had fired a powerful golden beam destroying the barrier and knocking Tentacruel out cold.

"Tentacruel!" cried Reiko as she quickly pulled Tentacruel back in its ball as well. "It looks like you're all out of usable Pokemon", laughed James. "Now it's time for you to black out! Victreebel, would you do the honor?"

Just as Reiko was about to launch a flying kick at Team Rocket, Victreebel sprayed its sleep powder at Reiko causing her to fall onto the sand ready to meet the sandman. "I am sorry Cameron-san", she yawned. "I don't think I will be protecting you any more", and she fell right asleep.

"Nice work James", smiled Jessie evily. "Now let's take her back to the palace so we can do some painful interrogation on her!"

"Say Jessie", asked James. "You don't suppose Reiko had followed those rebels to that old mansion right over there?"

"Nonsense", said Jessie. "That's what she'd want us to think. There's no way those rebels would hide out in such an obvious place." Then she released Kadabra from her Pokeball. "Kadabra", she commanded. "Next stop, the Rocketville Palace."

"Kadabra!" said Kadabra as it teleported away taking Jessie, James, and the sleeping Reiko with it.

* * * * * *

Our heroes found themselves inside the mansion next to a huge stairway that lead upstairs. "I'm so glad to have company." Said the mysterious voice. "I sure hope you'll stay for a long long while. I insist!"

"Who are you?" asked Brock.

"And where are you?" asked Cameron.

"I like to call myself the World's Greatest Pokemon Master", said the voice. "And as for where I am. I'm up on the top floor. Won't you please come on up so I can get a closer look at you?"

"Why don't you come down here?" asked Jenny.

"Because I don't really like leaving the comforts of my safe room", said the voice. "I'm sort of a shut-in."

"How can you become the World's Greatest Pokemon Master if you can't leave your room and collect Pokemon?" asked Misty.

"I have my methods", said the voice. "Now you've all come here to meet Mewtwo, right?"

"Yes, that's right", said Jenny. "Is Mewtwo in this mansion with you?"

"But of course", said the voice. "And he would very much love to meet all of you. Please come upstairs and I'll introduce you to him."

Our heroes did as they were told and walked up the stairway. "I just wonder who our host is?" whispered Cameron.

"I'm wondering how he could tame such a powerful Pokemon like Mewtwo", whispered Bill.

When they got to the top of the stairs, they came across a huge door. Jenny pushed it open and they all stepped inside. There, they found themselves in a huge boiler room. "What are we doing here?" asked Misty. "I thought this door would take us to a much more fancier room."

"Oh, I forgot to tell you", said the voice. "I don't just let anyone see Mewtwo. Only the cream of the crop Pokemon masters are worthy of seeing his powerful beauty. First you must defeat each of my minions." And suddenly the boiler started spraying out fire and out flew a gigantic bird made of hot orange flames.

"I can't believe it!" gasped Seymour. "It's Moltres! One of the three legendary birds!"

"Wow!" gasped Cameron as he aimed his Pokedex at the huge fiery bird.

"MOLTRES", replied Dexeena. "Known as the legendary bird of fire. Every flap of its wings creates a dazzling flash of flames."

"Uh, I think I left the headlights on my limburger outside", said Bill nervously. "Be right back." But Moltres started its fire spin attack trapping our heroes in a huge wall of fire. Bill quickly jumped back to the group. "Oh gee", he said while breathing hard. "I'm glad I got out of that unburned." But then they all pointed to Bill's whisker that was on fire. "YIPE! He shouted. "Quick, someone spit on me! PLEASE!" Psyduck quickly jumped out of Misty's backpack and squirted a tiny bit of water on Bill. "Thanks Psyduck", said Bill wringing out his wet whisker.

"Psy", smiled Psyduck not realizing the huge wall of fire that surrounded everyone.

"Slowie, I choose y...." , but Misty grabbed Cameron's wrist before he could release his Slowking.

"No Cameron", she said. "You need to save Slowie's energy for when we face Mewtwo. I'll handle this since my Pokemon can take out any flame." And she released Staryu, Starmie, Seaking, Seadra, and Poliwag who put out the entire firewall with their water gun attacks. "Nice work everyone", said Misty. "Now put out that bird's fire!" All of Misty's Pokemon started squirting at Moltres, but it didn't affect it one bit. All the water just turned to steam the minute it touched Moltres's fiery skin.

"That's impossible!" gasped Misty. "Water types always beat fire types!"

"Moltres is no ordinary fire type", said Seymour. "In fact Moltres is no ordinary Pokemon at all!" Then Moltres flew up to the ceiling and started glowing a bright color.

"Uh oh", said Seymour. "It looks like Moltres's getting ready for a sky attack! A very painful flying attack!"

"Rock types are strong against flying attacks", said Brock. "Maybe our newly caught water and rock type combinations can defeat it."

"That could work", said Seymour as he, Brock, Stella, and Jenny released their Omanyte, Omastar, Kabuto, and Kabutops. "Omanyte, Omastar! Withdraw now!" commanded both Brock and Seymour.

"Kabuto, Kabutops. Harden yourselves!" commanded Jenny and Stella. All four Pokemon started to concentrate and suddenly made their rocky bodies a lot bigger and tougher.

Then Moltres started to swoop down at our heroes. But Brock and Seymour had ordered their Omanyte and Omastar to use spike cannon knocking Moltres sharply in the stomach causing it to fall right on its back.

"Let's get it while it's weakened!" said Jenny.

"Right", said Stella as they commanded their Kabuto and Kabutops to use hydro pump to put out the weakened Moltres's flame until it was just an unconscious charred bird.

"Yes, we did it!" cried Jenny and Stella as they high-fived each other. Brock and Seymour did the same thing.

"Congratulations", said the voice. "You've actually managed to defeat my first minion. Now lets see how you do against number two." And another door opened up leading them to another room.

The room they were in now was a game room. It was full of old pinball machines along with classic arcade games like Pac-Pikachu, Mankey Kong, and Poliwagger. "Wow!" smiled Seymour. "I haven't seen any of these games in years! They bring back wonderful memories!"

"Ah, a fan of the golden age of video arcades", said the voice. "Do you remember this one?" and a door opened and a lot of smoke appeared and out slid a video game that put Seymour in a hypnotic trance.

"Dragonite's Lair!" whispered Seymour. "A game that's so elegant and fair. I spent many hours controlling that knight. Mastering the secrets and making him fight. I thought I would see that glorious game no more. But now it's back. The game I adore!" and he slowly approached the game with a quarter in his hand.

"Can you imagine being obsessed with a video game?" said Stella.

"I know how that feels", said Cameron for that's how he got into this world in the first place. Just as Seymour had put his hand on the joystick. A bolt of electricity went soaring into his body. He screamed and got thrown back.

"Seymour, are you all right?!" asked Jenny as she ran up to him with his hair all sticking up like Albert Einstein. He took out a mirror and looked at himself.

"So that's why Mr. Einstein wears his hair like that", he said while smiling.

Suddenly all the games started shooting out electricity. Everyone backed into a wall while they watched the electric bolts take the form of something. It was another large bird with a long beak and wings made of lightning bolts. "ZAPDOS!" whispered Bill. Cameron took out his Pokedex again.

"ZAPDOS", replied Dexeena. "A legendary bird Pokemon that is said to appear from clouds while dropping enormous lightning bolts." And Zapdos demonstrated by shooting bolts at all seven of our heroes.

"Sandy, I choose you!" shouted Cameron as he was about to throw his Pokeball but stopped for he became paralyzed. Sandy did manage to come out of his ball only to find Cameron and his friends all paralyzed stiff. He then looked up and saw Zapdos spinning its beak around preparing for a drill peck attack.

"Oh no", gasped Cameron. "What have I done?! Sandy's gonna become Swiss cheese thanks to me! Quick Sandy! Run away now!"

"Shrew!" shouted Sandy for he had no desire to abandon his beloved master. He was about to use his rock slide attack on Zapdos, then smiled and had a neat idea. He disappeared off screen and came back on screen in a toga and headband. He put a tiny pebble in a sling and hurled it into Zapdos's forehead causing it to fall down unconscious.

"Wow!" smiled Cameron. "Reading those Bible stories to you every night sure paid off. Thank you Sandy and thank you Lord!"

"Sandshrew!" smiled Sandy as he reached into Cameron's backpack and sprayed paralyze heal potion on everybody.

"So your Pokemon are both strong and clever", said the voice. "So far you've defeated two of my minions, but once you take on my third and last one. You will truly be worthy of battling Mewtwo." And yet another door opened and our heroes slowly stepped through that one as well.

This time they found themselves in a huge kitchen. "I wonder where the last minion will pop up?" said Brock.

"I don't know about all of you, but I could use a nice drink", said Misty and she was about to open a large refrigerator.

"No Misty, don't!" cried Cameron as he held the fridge door shut. "I have a feeling that the last minion will be waiting in there!" For he had a pretty good idea on who the last Pokemon might be.

"Well at least let me get a glass of water from this faucet over there", said Misty as she picked up a nearby cup and filled it with water.

"Happy now?" asked Brock.

"No not yet", said Misty. "I like my water with plenty of ice", and she placed the cup under an ice dispenser which happened to be attached to the same refrigerator she was about to open.

"No Misty, don't!" cried everyone.

"Hey, I'm not opening the fridge", protested Misty. "I'm just using the ice dispenser. I definitely don't think a huge scary Pokemon will come out of that tiny square shaped hole." Suddenly, the dispenser exploded and tons of ice cubes started bouncing off Misty's head.

"AAAAAH!" screamed Misty. "Do something please before I get an ice cube headache!" and then even more cubes started shooting out of the fridge causing everyone to slip and fall onto the floor. And when the machine finally stopped. Everyone found themselves standing waists high in a pile of frozen ice cubes.

"I wish I wore a long pants uniform instead of the skirt today", said Jenny freezing.

"At least only half of you is cold", cried Bill who just swam up to the surface with blue fur. Everyone looked annoyed at Misty.

"Uh, at least I didn't open that fridge door", said Misty while twiddling her thumbs. Just then, all the ice cubes started to float up in the air and they formed into yet another large bird that was made of ice.

"And so it begins", said Cameron as he aimed his Pokedex at the Pokemon he was expecting to see.

"ARTICUNO", replied Dexeena. "A legendary bird Pokemon that is said to appear to doomed people who are lost in icy mountains."

"Well why couldn't it have stayed in the mountains?" said Stella nervously while holding onto Brock who was smiling. Then Articuno started to blow a huge blizzard at our heroes making them shiver.

"Growlithe, I choose you!" shouted Jenny.

"And I choose you Vulpix!" shouted Brock as the dog and the fox appeared in front of Articuno.

"Use your flamethrower attacks now!" shouted both Jenny and Brock. Growlithe and Vulpix complied by breathing large amounts of fire at the blizzard Articuno was blowing. It shortened it a little, but not too much.

"Vulpix and Growlithe can't keep this up much longer", said Brock. "We need a stronger fire type!"

"Cameron, doesn't your Aerodactyl now know fire blast?" Misty asked him.

"Yes, that's right", said Cameron. "Aero, I choose you!" And he released his Aerodactyl who was hovering right in front of Articuno.

"CUNO!" shouted the bird as it stopped its blizzard and flew right at the big stone flyer.

"Okay Aero, give it your fire blast!" shouted Cameron. Aero blasted her fire at Articuno, but it just sped out of the way causing the fire to hit a nearby wall. Then Articuno started appearing and disappearing from Aero's sides pecking her to death.

"What's it doing to Aero?!" cried Cameron.

"That must be Articuno's agility", said Seymour. "I'm afraid Aero won't be fast enough to defeat it!" Aero fell to the floor all tired and beaten. Then Articuno started preparing itself for a frosty ice beam attack.

"I gotta do something", gasped Cameron. "I think I know!" He quickly reached into his backpack and pulled out the X-Defend device that Koga had given him.

"Here you go Aero", called out Cameron as he aimed the device's light at his Aerodactyl just as Articuno released its ice beam. The beam hit Aero, but it didn't freeze her one bit. "Cuno!" gasped Articuno nervously.

"There you go Aero", shouted Cameron. "You'll be harder to damage now that I've increased your defense. Now try out your fire blast again!" Aero smiled as she blasted another clump of fire from her mouth and this time it did hit Articuno.

"CUNO!!!" screamed Articuno as it melted and fell to the ground like a blueberry slushee.

"AERO!" shouted Aero as she spread her wings long and proud while everybody cheered.

"I couldn't've said it better myself Aero", said Cameron with pride also.

"Congratulations", said the voice. "You've actually defeated all 3 of my minions. Usually most trainers don't make it past Moltres. I am truly honored to have a group of worthy Pokemon trainers in my home. I am proud to say that you're ready to take on Mewtwo!" and the final door opened and they all walked through.

The final room they were in was very fancy. It was a den with beautiful furniture, a big screen TV, a bookshelf filled with books and a nice warm fire in the fireplace.

"Wow", said Misty, Stella, and Jenny with stars in their eyes imagining the den they'd like to have once they're married.

"You like my humble little pad?" asked the voice who was behind the huge red chair. "I'm touched. Actually I can't take all the credit. The original owners of this mansion probably decorated it themselves. I'm glad I spared this place when I caused that volcano to erupt five years ago."

"You caused the volcano to erupt?!" gasped Brock. "How could you do such a thing?!"

"Simple question", said the voice. "It was there! I hope that clears it up."

"Just exactly who are you?!" demanded Jenny. "And how could you've recruited the all powerful legendary birds?"

"And where is Mewtwo?!" demanded Misty. "We need him to get a good friend of ours back!"

"You want Mewtwo?" asked the voice. "Your last wish is my command!" And the chair turned around and everyone's jaws dropped when they saw their host. It was Mewtwo himself wearing a red housecoat while smoking a pipe. He got out of his chair and slowly levitated himself to our heroes looking down at them.

"Y...You're our host?!" gasped Cameron.

"I'm full of surprises, aren't I?" smiled Mewtwo who didn't move his lips when he talked. He was speaking to them telepathically. "I just love it when Pokemon trainers come to challenge me. That way, when they lose, I add them to my fine collection."

"What do you want with trainers?" asked Brock.

"I want their skills, strength, and intellegence", smiled Mewtwo. "Once I have all the world's greatest Pokemon masters in my power. I will become the world's most powerful creature on Earth. People and Pokemon alike will bow down to me, serve me, and dance for me in demeaning little outfits! Doesn't that just sound delicious?! HA HA HA HA!"

"Well we're not going to let you do this you monster!" shouted Misty. "We came here to free our friend Ash Ketchum and we won't rest until we defeat you and make you release him!"

"Hmmm, Ash Ketchum", said Mewtwo while putting a finger up to his lips. "That name does ring a bell. Maybe he's in the back of my mind somewhere. Just trying one pathetic scheme after another to escape. But I'll make you a deal. If one of your best Pokemon can defeat me in a match, I'll let this Ash loose along with all my other victims."

"And what if we lose?" asked Brock.

"Then you'll all be joining him in my little prison forever", laughed Mewtwo. "What do you say? Either way you'll be reunited with your friend."

Everyone huddled together and discussed while Mewtwo just stood there admiring the mounted human heads over his wall. "Okay Mewtwo, you've got a deal", said Cameron with a determined look. "And I'm going to challenge you!"

"Ah, so it seems the youngest cub of the pack wants to challenge me", smiled Mewtwo. "Let's just see how talented you really are."

"Please win Cameron", Misty whispered into Ash's ear. "For ours and Ash's sake."

"Don't worry Misty", said Cameron. "I got my secret weapon right here. Slowie, I choose you!" And Slowking appeared right in front of the unimpressed Mewtwo.

"You're sending a simple minded Slowking to battle me?" laughed Mewtwo out loud. "This battle should be over soon enough. Go ahead boy and call out the first attack."

"Okay Slowie", commanded Cameron. "Show him the mighty power of mindzero!"

"Slow?" asked Slowking as he scratched his crown while question marks surrounded it.

"Slowie, I said use your mindzero attack!" cried Cameron. "Don't you remember Sabrina programming it into you?!"

"Slow?" asked Slowking as the question marks completely covered him.

"I can't believe it!" gasped Seymour. "That mindzero doesn't seem to do anything!"

"Maybe that attack doesn't exist!" said Misty nervously. "Maybe Sabrina made it up just to fool us and trap us!"

"Is this the best your mighty king can do?" said Mewtwo disappointedly as he gave a psychic flick with his finger knocking Slowking over causing him to roll right into Cameron knocking him down.

"Slowie", cried Cameron. "I'm sorry!"

"Slow", said a sad Slowie who in the first time didn't feel clueless about the agony of defeat.

"It looks like I win", said Mewtwo with evil glowing eyes. "And now may I introduce you all to your permanent home!"

"Everyone scram!" cried Bill as he and the six humans started to run for their lives then realized that they were running in mid air. They were all trapped in Mewtwo's mindjail beam.

"NOOOOO!" they all shouted as they shrunk down and got pulled into Mewtwo's evil mind.

* * * * * *

When our heroes awoke, they found themselves in a brand new world. "Where are we?" asked Cameron who found himself lying on what looked like a soft pink gooey mattress.

"I believe we're all in Mewtwo's mind!" gasped Seymour. Everyone looked in panic at the nightmarish scenery of the huge walls and ceiling made of brain cells and the red roots sticking out from the floor like evil trees.

"This can't be!" cried Brock.

"It's so gross!" whined Stella.

"I've always wanted to enter the mind of a Pokemon", said Bill. "But not like this! No wait. I'm already sharing the brain of my Rattata. So never mind what I said."

"So this is the place Ash has been living all these years", whispered Misty. "I hope he's still alive!"

"Don't worry Misty, we'll find him", said Cameron.

"And we also have to find a way out of this brain", said Jenny.

"And to fight off any invaders", said Bill.

"What invaders?" asked Jenny.

"Those coming right at us!" cried Bill as he pointed to the tiny little dots at the far distance that suddenly turned out to be miniature Mewtwos with razor sharp teeth.

"What are those things?!" gasped Stella.

"Those must be Mewtwo's mind minions", said Seymour with his knees shaking. "I believe that they're gonna feast on our bodies so only our thoughts, skills, and intellects will be left so that Mewtwo can absorb them into his own brain!"

"NO!" cried Misty. "I want to keep my intellect along with my body as well!"

"Clefairy, Clefable! Use your light screen to protect us!" cried Seymour as he released his two fairy Pokemon who created their light dome around our heroes. The Mini-Mewtwos tried to chomp through the light screen like mad but with no luck.

"Nice work Seymour", said Jenny. "That should keep us safe for now."

"Thank you", said Seymour. "But I'm afraid Clefairy and Clefable can't keep this screen up for long."

"Fairy, Fable!" said both Clefairy and Clefable trying really hard to protect their friends.

Just then they heard a voice call out. "Charizard, use your flamethrower attack!" A huge flying lizard flew out of the darkness and burned up half the Mewtwos turning them into black dust.

"That Charizard!" gasped Misty. "Could it be?" The surviving Mewtwos stopped biting at the light screen and stared angrily at Charizard and the shadows standing at the distance. They were in the shapes of giant Pokemon while the final shadow was in the shape of a teenage boy. The Mewtwos suddenly stopped attacking our heroes and started flying towards the shadows. Then both Clefairy and Clefable undid their light screen and fainted from exhaustion.

"Nice work you two", said Seymour as he pulled them back in their balls.

Just as the Mewtwo's were about to attack the shadows, the first shadow stepped out of the darkness and revealed itself as a huge tortoise with cannons on its shell. "Blastoise, use hydro pump now!" commanded the stranger. "BLASTOISE!" yelled Blastoise as it gushed out powerful jets of water at some of the Mewtwo's completely dampening them. Then another flock of Mini-Mewtwos came attacking.

"You're up next Venusaur", said the stranger. "Get 'em with your sleep powder!" "SAUR!" said the huge lizard with a giant flower on its back as it sprayed some pollen all over the Mewtwos putting them to sleep right next to the dampened ones.

"Okay Pidgeot, blow them away with a whirlwind!" commanded the stranger. The giant pigeon cooed as it flapped its wings hard blowing away the weakened Mini-Mewtwos to another part of the brain.

"Great job you guys!" said the stranger proudly as he recalled all four of his Pokemon back in their Pokeballs.

"That guy is amazing!" said Stella.

"He's got the same group of Pokemon Ash has" said Brock. "Only they're fully evolved!"

"I think I know who that is", thought Cameron smiling. Then the stranger stepped out of the shadows and approached our heroes.

"Hi guys", said the teen. "I just knew you'd find me one day."

"ASH!!!" cried Misty who got down on her knees in joy.

TO BE CONTINUED!

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Well it finally happened. Our heroes have finally found their long lost friend only to be sent to the same trap he's been in for five years. Will they all escape Mewtwo's mad mind? And what will happen to poor Reiko who's now in the clutches of Jessie and James? And why didn't Slowking's mindzero attack work? For the answers to these and many more questions, stay tuned. ;)


	23. How Ash Survived

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 23

How Ash Survived

Our heroes looked awestruck at the new 16 year old Ash who was slowly approaching them, especially a drooling Misty. Surviving five long years in Mewtwo's evil mind certainly had changed him. He was very tall and had huge muscles. His black hair was very shaggy and was done in a long ponytail in the back. He had a very handsome face and he was wearing a black tank top and faded blue jeans along with his Pokebelt and he had a large leather wristband on his right wrist that had all eight gym badges sewn to it.

He finally approached the group looking really tough and fierce. Misty, Brock, and Stella stood there nervously for they remembered the last time they saw him, they put him in a Mr. Mime suit and got him captured by Team Rocket. Ash reached out his arms and the three closed their eyes just waiting for the pain they knew they deserved. But instead, Ash was hugging them happily. Misty, Brock, and Stella became surprised, yet relieved.

"Misty, Brock, Stella!" cried Ash happily. "I thought I'd never see you guys again! I'm so glad you're here!" They all noticed that Ash was no longer speaking in that Rudolph sounding 10 year old voice, but in a deep sexy teenage voice like Jason Priestly or Luke Perry.

"Hey Brock", he said while shaking his hand tightly. "Have you been breeding any new Pokemon these past five years?"

"Uh, yes", said Brock confused but still smiling.

"And Stella", smiled Ash. "I hope that Team Rocket didn't completely ruin your show when they busted in and took me away."

"Uh, no. We made out the best we could", said Stella who also smiling while trying to keep back her tears.

"And Misty!" gasped Ash as he looked at how tall and sexy she became over the years. "Misty, Misty, Misty."

"Yes, yes, yes?!" asked Misty nervously.

"Uh, well", stuttered Ash. "I haven't forgotten that I owe you a bike. I'll try to get you one as soon as I can. Even if I have to make one by hand."

"Uh, thank you", said Misty secretly disappointed. For she really didn't care about that bike anymore. She was hoping that he'd say something else to her.

"And you must be the Pallet Jenny!" smiled Ash as he stared at the policewomen right behind the three.

"Why yes", said Jenny surprised. "How could you tell? I thought all Jennies looked alike to everyone."

"It says so on your name tag", smiled Ash.

"Oh yes", said Jenny blushing.

"I bet you do a fine job protecting my hometown and all my friends and mother", smiled Ash.

"Yeah, heh heh", said Jenny twiddling her thumbs.

"And I remember you", smiled Ash looking at the scientist. "You're Seymour Scientist. Are you still coming up with those neat poems?"

"I do my best, just put me to the test. I will not rest till I'm out of zest." Said Seymour sputtering out any words he could think of even though he was trapped in a scary mind.

"And just who owns this neat little Rattata?" smiled Ash as he bent down and petted the Rattata that looked a little annoyed.

"How many times do I have to tell people that I'm nobody's Pokemon?!" shouted Bill causing Ash to get thrown back.

"That Rattata talks!" said Ash shocked. "I thought Meowth was the only talking Pokemon."

"Please forgive me Ash", said the Rattata humbly. "I don't know if you remember me, but I'm Bill. You and your friends once visited me."

"I remember you Bill", said Ash. "You got stuck in that Kabuto costume. This new Rattata costume you're wearing is very realistic. How are you able to squeeze into such a small thing?"

"I'll tell you soon", said Bill. "When I'm in a better mood. Which'll be when I get my DNA chamber back"

Ash had no idea what Bill meant about that, but then he saw a new face with the group. He approached the boy who was smiling excitedly at him. "Hi", said Ash. "I don't think I've ever seen you before. But that hat you're wearing I recognize."

"Oh yes", said Cameron as he took off the hat and handed it back to Ash. "Here you go", he whispered. "Your mother asked me to return this to you."

A tear formed in Ash's eye as he took the hat and placed it back on his head. "Good ol' Mom", he sighed. "Thanks kid."

"Your welcome", said Cameron excitedly. "My name is Cameron Fusterman and you're my hero."

"I'm someone's hero?" asked Ash surprised.

"Yes", whispered Cameron. "I want to become the world's greatest Pokemon master like you."

Ash started blushing uncontrollably. "Uh, thanks for the vote of confidence kid", he stuttered. "But I don't really think of myself as the world's greatest Pokemon master. If I could only get out of this lame brain, I could work on that."

"We're sorry Ash", sighed Misty. "We tried to form a rescue party, but it sort of blew up in our faces."

"I'm just sorry that you all became Mewtwo's victims", said Ash. "Let's all go to a safer place before Mewtwo starts creating more mind minions. Follow me everyone."

"Where are we going?" asked Brock.

"To New Pallet", smiled Ash. Everyone became confused as they followed Ash to dead end. He lifted up one of the brain cells and revealed a secret entrance. "Ladies first", he said to Misty.

"Uh, no thanks", said Misty nervously. "Stella, Jenny, you both are much more lady like than me. You go first."

"Thanks a lot", grumbled Stella as she stepped through.

"A policewoman's work is never done", sighed Jenny as she stepped through also.

When all of our friends had stepped through the entrance. They found themselves in what looked like a small village. There were tiny little houses with people waving hello to them. And a sign that said, WELCOME TO NEW PALLET. POPULATION, 23. "Yep", said Ash proudly. "I named this place after my old hometown."

"Hi Ash", said a red headed teenage guy who approached the group. "I see you found us some more citizens to add to our growing town. Welcome to New Pallet everyone."

"Guys, this is my friend Ryan", said Ash. "He was the third victim of Mewtwo's mindjail beam. Now he's my second in command here."

"Yep", said Ryan. "Five years ago I heard about a mysterious powerful Pokemon that lived in a mansion on the now deserted Cinnabar Island. Being a Pokemon trainer like Ash, I wanted to try and capture it. Unfortunately, it captured me instead. I would've been lost forever in this evil mind until Ash came and took me to this safe place."

"You mean Mewtwo doesn't know you're all here?" asked Cameron.

"That's right", smiled Ash. "You see, this part of the brain is where some of Mewtwo's lost memories wind up. I stumbled onto it the first day I came here. Mewtwo must've passed by a village one day and completely forgotten all about it. Ever since then, I've been going out on patrol every day looking for more victims of the dreaded mindjail beam and bringing them back here in this safe haven from Mewtwo's minions."

"Wow!" gasped Misty. "You've truly become a rebel hero."

"Uh, thanks Misty", said Ash blushing.

"Where did you get those cool clothes?" asked Stella.

"We get them from Lulu over there", smiled Ash pointing to the woman sitting on her porch surrounded by 3 Weedles and 3 Beedrills. "Lulu and her Pokemon are talented tailors. How about showing them Lulu?"

"You heard the man guys", smiled Lulu. The Weedles nodded and started shooting out colored silk that the Beedrills gathered up with their needled front ends. Our heroes became amazed as they watched the Beedrills knit something up quickly. It was 3 T-shirts that had pictures of a Bulbasaur, Chamander, and Squirtle on them.

"How about that?!" said Brock amazed. "Beedrills that know how to knit."

"What do you all do for food?" asked Jenny.

"Luckily, Mewtwo thinks of food a lot", smiled Ash. "And he usually gets a craving right around 5:30." And he looked at his watch. "Get ready everybody!" he shouted out to all the villagers. They all rushed into their houses, came back out with forks and pots and gathered around a huge X that was in the center of the village.

"Counting down", said both Ash and Ryan. "5, 4, 3, 2, 1!" and suddenly something started to fall from the brain cell filled sky. It was a huge clump of spaghetti and meatballs. It landed splat right onto the X while sauce splattered on everyone while they all cheered.

"Dinner is served", smiled Ash. "And you're in luck on your first day here. Mewtwo's thinking about spaghetti!"

"Amazing", said Seymour while polishing the sauce from his glasses.

"What a neat way to get a meal", smiled Cameron also polishing his glasses.

"You won't be saying that on Mondays", said Ryan. "Those days Mewtwo gets a craving for, YECCCHH! Tuna Casserole!"

Bill took a huge bite of the spaghetti and said. "This is cold! Does Mewtwo always like his food cold?"

"He just doesn't think about warming up his food thoughts", smiled Ash. "But I know how to fix that", and he released his Charizard right in front of the spaghetti. "Okay Charizard", he commanded. "How about warming up our dinner?"

"CHAR!" smiled Charizard as it breathed a small fire not burning the spaghetti, but making it warm and ready to eat. All the villagers started scooping the spaghetti into their pots and taking it back to their homes.

"Nice work Charizard", smiled Ash as he fed him a meatball. "You earned it."

"Char!" smiled Charizard as it slurped Ash's face leaving a spaghetti stain on his face.

"Wow", said Misty. "In the old days, your Charizard never liked nor listened to you. Now it seems like you're both friends again."

"Well, we all suffered traumatizing and painful experiences in this evil brain for the past five years." Said Ash. "So me and my Pokemon were forced to work together as a team and eventually, Charizard learned to respect me. Right Charry?"

"Char!" smiled Charizard as it gave Ash a small hot foot.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow!" said Ash jumping up and down putting his foot out. "Tell me, how do you like this, eh?" Then he grabbed Charizard by the horns and tossed him on the ground. Our heroes became worried, but then saw Ash and Charizard laughing out loud while hugging each other.

"I guess boys will be boys", smiled Bill.

"CHOW TIME!!!" shouted a voice. They all turned around and saw a crazy man running like mad to the spaghetti pile and sticking his face into it like a gopher.

"Must you always embarrass me like that in front of newcomers?" sighed Ash as he pulled the man's head out of the spaghetti. Cameron suddenly recognized the man.

"Giovanni?!" asked Cameron. Sure enough it was Giovanni with a sauce stained face. He wasn't the same business suit wearing mob boss. He was dressed only in a white undershirt with yellow and white striped boxer shorts. He had let his hair grow long and was wearing his necktie like a headband.

"Hi babe!" he said looking crazy-eyed at Misty. "I'm Gio, New Pallet's hottest bachelor. Wanna give me a welcome kiss?" and he grabbed Misty's arms and moved his garlic smelling lips to hers.

"No, don't!" pleaded Misty trying to push him away with her foot but couldn't. Then Ash grabbed Gio by the shirt and threw him onto the ground.

"Do something like that again, and it's no bedtime stories for a week!" scolded Ash.

"No, I wanna find out if the 3 Snorlaxes find Goldilocks in Baby's bed!" cried Gio. "Okay, I'll be a good boy!" and he sat on the ground while folding his hands like an angel.

"Are you okay Misty?" asked Ash as he touched Misty's shoulders checking her out.

"Yeah, I'm fine", she whispered, "Thank you." Then both Ash and Misty looked at each other secretly blushing.

"I can't believe that this was the same Giovanni who was the all mighty, intimidating boss of Team Rocket", said Cameron looking at Gio who was busy cutting his toenail with his teeth.

"I guess being trapped inside his own Pokemon really drove him mad", sighed Ash. "We've all been trying to snap him out of it but with no success. At least he keeps things lively around here."

"Say, have any of you new guys seen a Persian?" asked Gio. Stella took out a Pokeball and remembered that the Persian she now owned was actually Giovanni's. She was about to reunite them until Gio spoke out. "I just love Persians. Especially with ketchup." Stella then put the ball back in her pocket realizing that it may not be a good idea to reunite them.

* * * * * *

Ash had gathered up a large amount of spaghetti and invited our heroes back to his house for dinner. His house was located around the edge of New Pallet and it looked almost like his Mom's old house. He opened the door and let everyone inside.

"Where's all your furniture?" asked Misty. Sure enough, the entire house was empty, except for a sleeping bag and pictures on the floor that consisted of Ash with his friends and Mom, and one with him and Pikachu.

"I guess Mewtwo didn't have any memories of the insides of these houses", said Ash. "So that means no furniture. But that's okay. That means there's more room for me and my Pokemon." He smiled as he released Charizard, Blastoise, Venusaur, and Pidgeot who were all ready for some dinner as well.

"PI!" called out a cute little voice from the sleeping bag. "Yes, it's dinner time little buddy", smiled Ash. "Come on out and dig in." And out crawled what looked like a purple Eevee with a jewel on its head.

"What a cutie!" smiled Misty as she picked up the new Pokemon while Cameron aimed his Pokedex at it.

"ESPEON, the psychic form of Eevee", replied Dexeena. "Nobody knows for sure how an Eevee becomes an Espeon.

"It's just like how that Eevee in Lavender Town became an Umbreon", said Cameron.

"Exactly", said Dexeena. Cameron looked puzzled at his Pokedex wondering if it was actually alive.

"I've heard about Espeons", said Bill. "I just never thought I'd actually see one."

"He was an Eevee when I first found him a couple of years ago while scouting around this brain", said Ash. "He must've crossed Mewtwo's path one day and got mindjailed. I took him back with me and we became friends. Then sometime later, he suddenly evolved into this new Pokemon."

"I believe Eevee was exposed to all this psychic energy in Mewtwo's mind forcing his molecules to evolve him into an Espeon", said Seymour as he took out his pad and pencil. "Very fascinating."

* * * * * *

Our heroes had let out all their Pokemon so they could join Ash and his Pokemon for their first meal in Mewtwo's mind prison. Cameron was plopping little bits of spaghetti and meatballs into Aero's Pokeball for he knew Aero was too big to fit into Ash's house and he also remembered that Ash had a frightening experience with an Aerodactyl in a certain episode.

While they were eating, Ash was looking through the Pokemon anime album that Cameron had given him. "I can't believe that I'm a cartoon hero in another world", Ash said as he was reading about the time he and Pikachu battled Lt. Surge. "That Lt. Surge was one tough gym leader."

"I'll say", said Cameron. "Right Sandy?"

"Shrew!" said Sandy with a sauce stained smile.

"You and your Sandshrew sure seem like a great team Cameron", said Ash. "Was he your very first Pokemon?"

"Yes he was", said Cameron remembering the day he first got transported into the Pokemon world, got captured by Team Rocket and how Sandy popped up and freed him. "Ever since that day, we've became quite a team along with my other team of great Pokemon. Right guys?!"

"Vile, Slow, Phan, BUZZ EL BUZZ!" said all of Cameron's Pokemon while busy eating.

"They all look great", said Ash. "And by the looks of them, I'll bet they've won lots of tough battles."

"Yes", smiled Cameron. "So far they've earned me 7 gym badges. All I need is the EarthBadge and I'll have them all."

"Congratulations, but I'm afraid you may not be able to get that last one", said Ash. "Old Gio was the EarthBadge gym leader and you saw the condition he's in now. I don't think you'll be getting a battle out of him."

"But I see an EarthBadge sewn to your wristband", said Cameron. "So you must've gotten it back from him somehow."

"Gio became so depressed and grieved after being imprisoned here that he gave me back the EarthBadge", said Ash. "Yes, here I am. Ash Ketchum. Winner of all 8 gym badges, but with no way to compete in the Pokemon League games."

Cameron and the others became silent thinking about the life Ash had to live. "But don't worry", he smiled. "I've learned to make the best of it. And helping other trainers who got caught by Mewtwo gives me a purpose in my life. And I'm so happy to see you all again. But I'm sorry that you might be spending the rest of your lives here though."

Brock stood up mumbling madly while tears poured out of his closed eyes. "Brock, what's wrong?" asked Stella.

"Please don't feel sad Brock", said Ash. "We'll all help you make the best of things here."

"It's not that!" shouted Brock. "Ash, I want you to hit me!"

"Hit you?!" gasped Ash while everyone gasped as well.

"HIT ME!!!" cried Brock as he pointed at his guilty face. "I was the one that put you in that Mr. Mime costume and got you kidnapped by Team Rocket in the first place! It's my fault you're living this jailed life! So don't pretend you're glad to see me! Hit me and give me what I deserve!!!" and Brock closed his eyes, (If they weren't closed already!)

Instead of a hit, Brock felt a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Brock", said Ash calmly. "I don't want to hit you. You're one of my best friends and nothing'll ever change that."

"What?!" asked Brock. "You're not one bit mad at what I've done to you?"

"I admit, at first I blamed you the first few days I was trapped here", explained Ash. "But then I soon realized that blaming someone never solves anything. So I decided to dedicate my life to taking care of Gio and all my other new friends here. To tell you the truth, I was hoping that none of you would come and find me. That way Mewtwo wouldn't be able to catch any of you as well."

"Well I'm sorry I let you down again Ash", whined Brock. "For now we've all been caught."

"If you really want to make it up to me, you can stop blaming yourself", said Ash. "I understand you did all of this just to impress a girl like Stella. And it looks like it worked. You sly dog you!" He said while winking and nudging Brock's arm.

"Thank you Ash", said Brock while hugging his friend. "I now can get on with my life knowing that you've forgiven me and we're friends again." Everyone smiled at the touching scene, except for Stella.

"It wasn't really Brock's fault Ash", said Stella sadly. "I started this whole mess by mistreating my Mr. Mime in the first place. Then when you put on that Mr. Mime suit, I whipped you, yelled at you, and got you captured by Team Rocket when I stopped you from speaking out. I'm the one that deserves to get hit!"

"No, don't you say that either", said Ash. "Like I said, I no longer have any grudges. Besides it was a good thing you trained me to be a Mr. Mime. Those acrobat skills you put me through gave me the strength and agility to defend myself against Mewtwo's mind minions. I just hoped you learned to treat your original Mr. Mime better after that."

"Oh, Mr. Mime!" cried Stella as she covered her face to hide her sadness.

"Did something happen to Mr. Mime?" asked Ash.

"He and her other circus Pokemon were stolen by Team Rocket the day you disappeared", said Brock.

"That's terrible", said Ash. "But didn't Pikachu try to shock those Rockets to death? Come to think about it, where's Pikachu? Why didn't you bring him along with you? He's not...not....."

"Sit down Ash", said Misty. "There are a few things we want to fill you on." So Ash sat down while his friends told him the story on how Team Rocket took away Pikachu, imprisoned Pallet Town and enslaved all the people causing his friends and his own mother to hide out in the sewers. As they slowly told Ash the story, they could see Ash's smile turn into a frown while his teeth were showing. His eyebrows dropped down making his angry look, and veins started to form on his head.

"THEY DID ALL THAT?!!!" growled Ash he started bulking up with rage just like Goku does on Dragonball Z. "Oh, those ?#$!& Rockets! It was bad enough when they chased us all over the world trying to nab my poor Pikachu and when they finally do, they capture my town and hurt all the people I love! That does it! I've gotta get out of this blasted brain NOW!!!" And he stormed out the door and started pounding on the brain cell ground. "Let me out of this brain you stupid Mewtwo!" he screamed. "You hear me! I'm gonna kill you from the inside if you don't let me out!" All the villagers rushed outside and watched their leader with question marks over their heads.

"Ash, what are you doing?!" cried Ryan. "Mewtwo's minions are sure to find us if you keep causing all this commotion."

"I don't care!" shouted Ash. "I just want out of this brain!"

"Cool", called out Gio. "Some of me is rubbing off of him!" and he started pounding on the ground as well while the villagers tried to hold him down while Brock and Jenny tried to restrain Ash.

"Ash, calm down!" said Jenny.

"I want my Pikachu and my Mamma!" cried Ash as more of his friends tried to restrain him. Cameron was watching the whole thing from the house feeling sorry for his hero. He looked down at his Pokemon and spoke to Slowking.

"Oh, Slowie", sighed Cameron. "If only your mindzero attack did work. I just don't understand what happened. Have you learned so many new attacks that you've forgotten mindzero? Or has evolving into a Slowking altered your memories making you forget mindzero?

"Slowking?" asked Slowie as the word mindzero started dancing around in his head. Suddenly Slowie started to grow brightly. Cameron stared with his mouth wide open as Slowie started to levitate right in front of him. "Slow!" said Slowie as it started to release a strange white energy that suddenly started to make the entire house disappear leaving him, Cameron, and the rest of his Pokemon standing in total whiteness.

"Say Ash", called out Lulu. "I think your house is disappearing!" Ash suddenly stopped pounding the ground as he and the others looked up and saw the white shadow that seemed to eat up the entire scenery. Suddenly, the entire village was getting erased leaving only the people and their Pokemon.

"Cameron, what is that Pokemon of yours doing?!" shouted Ash.

"I think he's using mindzero", said Cameron.

"So that's what it does", said Seymour jotting everything down on his notepad.

"It's eating our sanctuary!" shouted Gio in a panic. "No, this can't happen! I wanted to eat it!" The entire village gathered around and held each other tightly as they watched New Pallet vanish leaving them in total whiteness.

* * * * * *

Mewtwo was laid back in his chair letting his delicious spaghetti dinner digest when he suddenly felt a strange headache. "Whoah! Ice cream headache coming on", he said while clutching his head. "Wait a minute", he said. "I don't like ice cream. What's going on?!" Suddenly, his headache started to get worse like something was eating away at every thought and memory.

"Whatever it is you're all doing in there, STOP IT!" shouted Mewtwo. "I MEAN IT!" Then Mewtwo started running around the room clutching his head while screaming in pain.

"I can't take it!" he shouted. "Get out of my head this instant!" And he released a psychic beam and all of his captives were released onto the floor. Then Mewtwo fainted.

"I can't believe it", Ash said while slowly smiling. "We're all out! We're free!"

"It finally happened!" cheered Ryan and Lulu while they were dancing around. "WE"RE FREE!" All the villagers cheered as well for the miracle they thought would never happened just happened.

"Way to go Slowie!" shouted Cameron as he hugged his happy Slowking who was still clueless at what he did but was happy anyway.

"Wow, Sabrina's mindzero attack did work after all", said Misty. "I'm sorry I insulted her."

"It appears that mindzero could only work from the inside of Mewtwo's brain", said Seymour.

"So Slowie couldn't use it when we were outside", said Brock.

"Which means we all had to get ourselves captured to defeat Mewtwo", said Bill.

"Who cares", shouted Stella. "We're all free! And that awful Mewtwo is no more!"

"I wouldn't count on that!" said an angry voice. Everyone turned around and saw an enraged Mewtwo levitating with glowing red eyes.

"Everyone run for it!" shouted Jenny as they all headed for the door until Mewtwo psychically shut it.

"Oh, please don't leave now!" shouted Mewtwo. "I would so love to get revenge on all of you!"

"There's no way you're gonna pull us back into your fat head!" shouted Ash.

"And have you do that same painful thing to me again?" asked Mewtwo. "I don't think so! I'm just gonna destroy all of you right here and now!" and he started shooting psychic energy out of his eyes getting ready to hit everyone. Espeon suddenly jumped in front of Mewtwo and formed a reflect dome protecting everyone from the attacks.

"My little Espeon", said Ash. "You musn't do this! You'll waste all your energy trying to protect us all from that monster!"

"No, let your little bunny keep protecting you", said Mewtwo. "It'll be a fun challenge for me to destroy this pathetic shield to show that there's no protection from me!" And he started firing his psychic blasts once again trying to break the dome.

"PSYDUCK!" quacked out a voice from behind Mewtwo causing him to stop his attacks. There was Psyduck putting up his claws ready to defend his beloved Misty and friends.

"Psyduck, how did you get over there?!" shouted Misty from inside the dome. "And how did you get out of your Pokeball for that matter?"

"So this silly little quack is your last minute savior, eh?" laughed Mewtwo. "All right Psyduck, give me your best shot."

"Psy?" thought Psyduck trying to think of an attack and then thought of one. He turned around and used tail whip. But it didn't do anything except make Mewtwo laugh.

"That's not gonna defeat the world's dangerous Pokemon Psyduck!" shouted Misty. "Use something like hydro pump!"

"Psy", said Psyduck as he squirted a tiny bit of water onto Mewtwo's toe. "Thank you my dear duck", he smiled. "That certainly cooled down the hangnail I had pulled out this morning. Let me give you a reward." And he shot a tiny blast of psychic energy at Psyduck knocking him into the wall.

"Oh no, Psyduck!" cried Misty who tried to run to him but crashed into Espeon's reflect dome.

"And now for some duck soup", laughed Mewtwo as he slowly approached Psyduck. But all the psychic energy that hit Psyduck started to effect him wildly. An angry Psyduck stood up and started to change.

"I don't believe it", gasped Brock. "Your Psyduck is evolving!"

"You mean finally?!" gasped Misty. And sure enough, Psyduck was now a brand new duck. He was as tall as Misty, had blue skin, a crown shaped head with a jewel on it and he had long arms with sharp webbed hands. He let out a loud, "GOL!" Both Ash and Cameron aimed their Pokedexes at the new duck.

"GOLDUCK, the evolved form of Psyduck", said both Dexter and Dexeena. "Often seen swimming elegantly in lake shores, it is often mistaken for the Japanese monster, Kappa."

"Amazing", said an awestruck Ash. "Your Pokedex is a female while mine's a male!"

"You're still clueless as ever Ash", sighed Misty as she gazed at her new Golduck.

"Ha!" scoffed Mewtwo. "Do you actually think this new blue you can defeat me?! We'll just see." And he started to launch another psychic blast at Golduck. But Golduck just smiled and released a powerful confusion attack sending the psychic blast back at Mewtwo hurling him into the fireplace.

"HOT, HOT, HOT, HOT!" shouted Mewtwo as he ran around trying to put out the fire on his butt. "Why you foolish little bird!" he shouted angrily. "Now feel the extent of my full power!" And he was about to charge himself up until he curiously saw the jewel on Golduck's forehead glowing brightly.

"But first, I think I'll relieve you of that pretty jewel", said Mewtwo as he was about to rip it off Golduck's head. Suddenly, a powerful beam shot out from the jewel hitting Mewtwo in the face and knocking him into a bookshelf causing it to smash and knocking Mewtwo out completely.

"That's a full hyper beam attack!" shouted Seymour. "I never knew that duck had it in him."

"But of course", smiled Misty. "After all, I am his trainer."

"Well why did it take so many years to get him to evolve then?" smiled Ash. Misty just slyly bopped him on the head. "Oh how I missed doing that to him", she sighed.

Espeon saw that the danger was over and undid his reflect power. "Nice work Espeon", smiled Ash as he picked up the tired Pokemon and patted his head.

"And you too Golduck!" shouted Misty as she ran up to her new duck. "GOL!" cried Golduck happily then tripped, fell on his head, and started holding it in pain. "PSY-YAI-YAI!" he cried in his old Psyduck voice.

"You may look strong and pretty on the outside, but on the inside you're still my favorite headache", sighed Misty as she kissed the top of Golduck's bill. "Gol!" he said while blushing.

"Is Mewtwo out for the count?" asked Cameron pointing to the book buried Mewtwo. Ash cautiously approached the unconscious monster and checked him over.

"It looks like he broke his neck when he hit that bookshelf", said Ash. "Ladies and Gentlemen, the nightmare know as Mewtwo is no more."

"HOORAY!" shouted the entire group while they all cheered again. Normally, most of the trainers would never cheer when someone dies, but in Mewtwo's case, they made a happy exception.

* * * * * *

Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres suddenly woke up and wondered where they were. Now that Mewtwo was dead, his power over the birds had disappeared. All 3 of them quickly flew out of the mansion and flew off to their secretly hidden homes.

* * * * * *

Everyone had stepped outside of the mansion gazing at the blue sky, the blue sea, and smelling the fresh air. "I'd never thought I'd see the blue sky and sea again", said Ash. "They remind me of the color of your eyes Misty."

"Oh, that's so sweet Ash", cried Misty as she gave him a kiss.

"You, you kissed me!" said Ash surprised. "I thought that would be the last thing you'd ever do to me in our entire lives."

"Hey, it's a day for miracles", smiled Misty. "But don't forget, you still owe me a bike though!"

"Hmmm, the day of miracles isn't over yet", smiled Ash. They looked into each other's eyes and were about to kiss again, until Brock draped his arms over both of them.

"It's so great to have this old trio reunited!" he said happily.

"Yeah, sure it is", said both Ash and Misty smiling and blushing.

"How about us?!" called out Bill who was with Cameron, Stella, Seymour, and Jenny. "Can your trio become an eightsome?" and they all rushed over to the three friends and gave each other a group hug.

"This is the happiest day of my life!" said Ash with tears in his eyes. "Except for hearing about Team Rocket and learning about what they did to all the people I love! How I want to get even with them!"

"Well then why don't we all go back to Pallet and defeat them once and for all?" asked Cameron.

"We can do that?!" smiled Ash. "Then let's get going!"

"We can't", said Jenny. "We still haven't found a cavalry yet."

"Ash", called out Ryan who was with Lulu and all the other freed trainers. "You've helped us all survive these past five years and now we want to help you. We'll all be your cavalry and help you defeat this Team Rocket that's caused you all this pain."

"You guys would really do that for me?!" asked Ash.

"But of course", smiled Lulu. "After battling Mewtwo's mind minions for years, our Pokemon have gotten pretty strong. Strong enough to take down a few Rockets, right Beeswax?"

"BZZZZZ!" said a Beedrill who was hovering next to Lulu.

"Thank you my friends", smiled Ash. "I'll never forget any of you."

"Now how about leading the way Ash?" said Ryan as he saluted him.

"You got it", said Ash proudly as he released his Pidgeot. Ryan also took out a Pokeball and released a Lapras into the water. Then Ryan helped Lulu onto Lapras's armored back and got on as well. Everyone also released their flying and water Pokemon and got on their backs ready to follow their leader Ash. And finally Cameron released Aero while his friends got on her back.

"That's, that's an Aerodactyl, isn't it?!" said Ash nervously.

"Oh, I'm sorry Ash", said Cameron. "I know about the scary experience you had with an Aerodactyl once. But this is a different one. She was once a friendly Zubat who suddenly mutated into the same friendly Aerodactyl. Show him you're friendly Aero."

"AERO!" cawed Aero as she slurped Ash with her huge tongue. "Ha, Ha, Okay I believe you!" he laughed. "You are a friendly Aerodactyl", and he petted Aero's snout.

"You wanna ride with us Ash?" asked Misty. "There's plenty of room."

"No thanks", said Ash. "I'd prefer riding my Pidgeot. But you're welcome to ride with me Misty. How about it Pidgeot?" Pidgeot smiled and cooed at Misty wanting her to get on.

"I hope you don't mind Cameron", said Misty as she got off of Aero's back.

"No, not at all", smiled Cameron. "How about you Aero?"

"Aero!" smiled Aero for she and Cameron knew why Misty wanted to ride on Pidgeot. Ash helped Misty on to Pidgeot's back and got on behind her circling his muscular arms around her waist. Misty blushed as Ash commanded Pidgeot to fly them north to Pallet Town. Cameron and the others followed after them on Aero while all the other trainers and their Pokemon flew and swam after them on their way to free their leader's home town.

* * * * * *

Back at the mansion, Gio secretly crawled out from under a chair and saw the dead body of Mewtwo on the floor. He said nothing. He just took out a Pokeball and sucked Mewtwo's body into it. Then Gio ran out of the mansion, released his Kangaskhan into the water and jumped into her pouch. "Use your surf power K.K." commanded Gio happily.

"KHAN!" said Kangaskhan as she twirled her long tail like a boat motor and surfed off using her big feet like water skis.

"Wait for your beloved village idiot!" called out Gio as he tried to catch up with the group.

* * * * * *

Back at Rocketville, Meowth was having a fun time interrogating poor Reiko. He had corks in his ears while scratching his nails on a chalkboard. Reiko, who was tied tight to a chair, flinched in pain at the horrible screeching noises. "Are you now gonna tell us where those rebels went to or am I gonna have to hurt this poor chalkboard some more?" shouted Meowth.

"NO!" shouted Reiko with tears in her eyes. "Like the PLEASE STAND BY logo that cuts off the sound from your favorite TV show. You will never get me to talk!"

"I couldn't hear what you just said, but it sounded like a no to me!" laughed Meowth as he started scratching some more.

"I must be strong!" thought Reiko through the sadistic torture. "And you must be strong too Cameron-san. Wherever you are!" Little did she know was that her favorite guy would be coming back to her.

* * * * * *

Meanwhile in a control room, Jessie and James were back in their royal clothes and were monitoring the sewers. Jessie kept turning the dial and discovered something interesting in the southern section. It was a group of people who looked like hidden rebels to her. "I think we've hit the jackpot my dear James", smiled Jessie evily.

"I did too", smiled James. "I found a magical sewer filled with brownies floating in a sea of lemonade. Can we go there and collect some?!"

Jessie just groaned and walked over to her collection of mallets.

TO BE CONTINUED

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Well, Ash is finally free and is reunited with our heroes. But can he and his new friends free Pallet Town and defeat the Rockets before they do anything even worse? Stay tuned. ;) 


	24. Wall Fall Down

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 24

Wall Fall Down

Cameron and his friends had finally freed Ash from the evil Mewtwo and they were taking him and his loyal followers back to his home town of Pallet to free it from Team Rocket once and for all. When they finally got there, Ash became shocked and hurt at the sight he saw. A giant electric wall was surrounding his dear hometown.

"I can't believe Jessie and James could do this!" moaned Ash.

"We couldn't believe it either", said Brock. "I guess you never know what evil can be capable of sometimes."

"I tell you", shouted Ash. "If those rotten jerks have harmed a hair on my Mom and Pikachu, I'll..." and he started to charge at the wall until Misty tackled him.

"No Ash!" she cried. "You'll become dead if you set one finger on that wall!"

"Who cares!" cried Ash. "At least I'll be dead and inside the town. Let me through! Let me through!" Misty quickly calmed Ash down by slapping him hard.

"Thanks Misty", said Ash embarrassed. "I needed that."

"Anytime", smiled Misty.

"I guess this is the time your Electabuzz is supposed to save the day Cameron", said Bill.

"That's right", said Cameron as he took out Buzz's ball. "The Vermilion soldier said that Buzz would be able to take down that wall."

"But what about all those bad Growlithes and Arcanines that are always guarding that wall?" said Stella. "If we take it away, they're sure to attack us."

"Not unless we get 'em with an army of water Pokemon", said Misty as she released Staryu, Starmie, Seaking, Seadra, Poliwag, and her newly evolved Golduck. Cameron released Slowking, Ash his Blastoise, Brock his Omanyte, Stella her Kabuto, Jenny her Kabutops, Seymour his Wartortle and Omastar, and all of the other members of Ash's cavalry had released their water Pokemon as well. Including Ash's second in command Ryan who just released his Lapras.

"And now to release Buzz", said Cameron as he took another ball from his belt.

"Wait Cameron", said Seymour. "Before you release Buzz, I have something I want to say to Jenny."

"What is it Seymour?" she asked.

"Just in case we don't make it, I want you to hear this poem I wrote especially for you", said Seymour shyly blushing.

"Oh really?" smiled Jenny who was also blushing as Seymour started his poem.

"There are ladies called Jennies who are long arms of the law.  
They're pretty, tough as nails and are quick on the draw.  
They protect our hometowns from evil and fear.  
We are so thankful to have them near.  
But the Pallet Town Jenny I think is the best of course.  
She's the most special one they've got on the force.  
She's brave, strong, lovely, and smart.  
Though she's no thief, she's already stolen my heart."

"Oh Seymour!" cried Jenny with tears in her eyes. "Oh will you look at what you did to me?! You've made an officer of the law cry!"

"Uh, sorry Jenny", said Seymour nervously.

"Don't be my sweet scientist", smiled a tear filled Jenny and started reciting her own poem.

"I use to be serious, no-nonsense and gruff.  
I had no time for that mushy romance stuff.  
Until the day I met you my funny science man.  
You've touched me in ways no other man can.  
You like what I like and you want to please me.  
You show me neat things and never ever tease me.  
Now I can release the girl that's hidden under this blue.  
I can just be a civilian whenever I'm near you."

"Jenny, I.. I don't know what to say!" said Seymour with tears of joy in his eyes as well.

"You have the right to remain silent", smiled Jenny as she silenced him by kissing him long and good. Everyone stood there smiling at the happy sight.

"Don't we all have an electric wall to take down?!" said Jenny as she broke off the kiss and stared angrily at all the spectators.

"Oh yes", said Cameron blushing as he released his Electabuzz. "Buzz, can you help us remove this huge wall?"

"BUZZZZZZZ!" whispered Buzz as he gazed at the huge 80 foot wall made of delicious electricity. He slowly started to approach the wall.

"No Buzz, you can't touch it!" cried Cameron as he tried to hold him back. Buzz just gave his master a tiny zap knocking him down. Then Buzz took a deep breath and started to suck up some of the electricity that was radiating from the wall.

"There's no way a little guy like him can eat that whole wall", said Misty.

"Then why is that wall suddenly shrinking?" asked Brock as he pointed to the top. Sure enough the wall started to shrink, then grow back a little, and then shrink some more. Everyone became amazed at the big appetite that little Electabuzz had.

"Wow!" said Cameron as he got back up. "I wonder how many times a day Lt. Surge fed it?!"

"He probably rarely fed it", said Seymour. "That's why Buzz's hunger is so large."

"I wonder if Pikachu could get that ability", said Ash. "Don't worry Pikachu, I'll soon be on my way to you." He thought as he watched the wall shrink some more.

* * * * * *

Back at the palace, Jessie and James were still mercilessly torturing poor Reiko and having a good time with her. They were laughing evily while Reiko was laughing too. Mainly because they had her shackled to a tickle bed. Electronic feather dusters were tickling under her arms, robot hands were pinching her knees and little Growlithe's were slurping her bare feet.

"Don't you just hate us?!" James snickered.

"Now are you going to tell us where your little boytoy and his band of rebels are?" demanded Jessie.

"HA HA HEE HEE HEE!" laughed Reiko. "NO! I still will not betray Cameron-san! HA HA HA!"

"If only you were still loyal like this to me", sighed Jessie. "Oh well!"

She touched the dial on the bed and was about to increase the tickle power to sudden death until Meowth called out. "Hey guys, I'd think you'd better come look at this!"

"What is it Meowth?" said Jessie annoyed. "Can't you see I'm about to end someone's life through wonderful laughter?!"

"I think you should look at this Jess", said James as he pointed to the monitor Meowth was near. Jessie approached it and saw a disturbing scene. Their beautiful electric wall they were so proud of was shrinking rapidly.

"MY WALL!" screamed Jessie. "What's happening to it?! Who is responsible?!"

"Guess who", said Meowth as he aimed the cursor at a kid and enlarged the picture.

"FUSTERMAN!!" growled Jessie as she saw her little nemesis with his trusty Electabuzz who was sucking up the huge wall.

"Cameron-san?!" cried Reiko who was finally able to open her eyes after all that painful tickling and saw the joyous sight on the monitor.

"I can't believe this!" shouted Jessie. "That little twerp's even worse than that first twerp!"

"Speaking of that first twerp", said James. "Check out that guy who's next to him." They looked and saw a teen with black hair and a very familiar looking hat. Jessie enlarged the picture again until all you could see was the teen's face.

"KETCHUM!!" growled Jessie in an ever bigger growl.

"Wow, he's certainly grown up over the years", said James. "He look's so different."

"I can't tell", said Meowth. "All you humans look the same to me."

"Who cares what he looks like or how old he is now!" shouted Jessie. "Just look at the muscles on that former twerp! No doubt he's gonna bust in here and take back his Pikachu! We've gotta stop all of them!" and she quickly turned on the intercom.

"Listen up every last one of you Rockets!" she shouted. "We've got some unwelcome intruders who're about to break into our town and take it away from us. So I want all of you to take out any dirty rebel you first see and I don't mean take them out on dates either! Now get out there and defend your beloved monarchs!"

* * * * * *

Meanwhile, the electric wall was finally no more. Cameron looked down at his Electabuzz who had an extremely bloated stomach and a big staticky smile on his face.

"Nice work Buzz", praised Cameron. "But are you all right?" Buzz replied with a shocking belch that caused Cameron's hair to stick up.

"So this is what those rotten Rockets did to my town", said Ash quietly as he stared at his once beautiful town which was now covered with smog, no green grass or trees, and most of the familiar houses replaced with ugly factories.

"We're sorry this happened Ash", said Misty hugging his arm. "It was a nightmare for all of us too."

"Well I'm here to wake everyone up from this nightmare!" growled Ash as he started slamming his fist into his hand many times. "Come my loyal followers. Let's win back my town!"

"Which may not be as easy as it sounds", said Bill as he hid behind Cameron's legs and pointed to the town. Everyone looked in fear at what they saw. A whole pack of Growlithes and Arcanines were charging while breathing out fire.

"Just as I predicted", said Stella while hiding behind her Kabuto.

"Which is why we got water power on our side", smiled Misty. "Right guys?" All the water Pokemon that had just been released complied by using their water gun, bubble, bubblebeam, surf, waterfall, and hydro pump attacks at the charging dogs. They were able to take out the small Growlithes but the giant sized Arcanines were another story. The Arcanines had used their fire blast attacks to turn all the water attacks into steam.

"Surfs up dudes!" called out a voice. Everyone immediately got out of the way for a huge wave started coming their way. And riding on top of it was Lapras and on top of Lapras was Ryan.

"That's the biggest surf attack I've ever seen!" said Bill amazed. And it was true. That huge wave splashed on all those giant dogs putting out their fiery breath and knocking them out. Ryan and Lapras smiled as they watched all their friends holding up cards that say 10 and 9.5 on them.

* * * * * *

Misty and Brock were now leading our heroes to an open manhole cover. "Will this hole lead us to my Mom?" asked Ash.

"Yes Ash", said Brock. "Over the years your Mom, Prof. Oak, Misty, Stella and I have started an underground resistance force where we help out poor citizens who've been tormented by Rockets."

"Oh how I'd like to break each and every one of those Rockets' necks!" grumbled Ash.

"Well it looks like you'll get your chance right now", said Cameron as he pointed to the army of Rockets that suddenly appeared right in front of them.

"Greetings all you happy little rebels", said the Rocket leader. "We'd really love it if you'd surrender so we won't have to beat you all up and sweat like crazy." And they all pulled out their guns, clubs, and crossbows.

"Bring it on!" shouted Ash. "I'll take on all of you all by myself!"

"WHAT?!!!" shouted Misty.

"That should be interesting", smiled the leader.

"No Ash!" called out Lulu who jumped right in front of him. "Let me and my darlings handle them!" and she released her 3 Weedles right in front of the army who just laughed out loud.

"Can you believe this?!" laughed the leader. "This girl has nothing but 3 little Weedles who're gonna defeat all 100 of us. What're they gonna do, cute us to death?!"

"Weedle, give 'em your string shot", smiled Lulu. The Weedles complied by firing large amounts of silk at the army. Suddenly, they immediately stopped laughing for they were trapped in a ball of silk that was strong as steel.

"Nice work you guys", smiled Lulu as she put down her arm and let her Weedles crawl up it and cuddle it.

"Bleahhh!" groaned Misty as she saw those bugs on Lulu's arm. "Though I'm grateful for what those Weedles did, I still hate bugs!"

"I hope you don't mind that I defeated those Rockets for you Ash", said Lulu.

"No, not at all", smiled Ash. "You probably saved me from getting seriously beat up."

"Allow me to remove that ball of trouble", smiled Ryan.

"Be my guest pal", smiled Ash.

"Hitmonchan, mega punch now!" commanded Ryan as he released a Pokemon with huge boxing gloves. It made a glowing fist and socked the ball of tangled up Rockets out of sight.

"Nice work H.C.", smiled Ryan as he raised its arm up in victory.

"CHAN!" said H.C." proudly.

* * * * * *

When they all got down into the sewers and came to their secret camp. They found that it was empty. Not a human nor Pokemon was in sight. "Where is everyone?!" asked Cameron.

"Mom, where are you?" called out Ash.

"Prof. Oak?" asked Brock.

"Girls?" asked Stella calling out for her circus staff.

"Togepi?" stuttered Misty nervously. "PI!" called out a sad little voice. Misty quickly turned around and found her Togepi slowly walking up to its mother with tears in its eyes.

"Oh Togepi!" cried Misty as she was about to pick up her egg until her Pokeballs started flickering.

"Misty", said Brock. "You can only carry six Pokemon with you. You'll have to send one of your Pokemon back to your special storage place if you want to get back Togepi."

"Oh yes, that's right", said Misty as she collected her balls. "My storage place is back at the Cerulean gym but which Pokemon should I send back?" Then Staryu popped out of its ball and spoke to Misty in its Staryu language.

"You'll volunteer to go back Staryu?" asked Misty. "HA!" replied Staryu with a smile. Although no one could see it since it didn't have a face.

"Thank you my dear Staryu", said Misty as she hugged Staryu, put it back into its ball, pushed the button on the ball and it teleported away. Then Misty picked up Togepi and hugged it tightly.

"Misty, I think you'd better go easy on Togepi unless you want to crack it and end up with egg on your face", said Ash.

"Oops, sorry Togepi", said Misty blushing while Togepi cooed happily. It had been many months since she left her Togepi behind and now she was reunited with it at last. "Togepi, you've been living down here all alone?" asked Misty worriedly. "What happened to Mrs. Ketchum and the others?"

"Pi", cried Togepi as it jumped out of Misty's arms and wanted everyone to follow it. Togepi had led them to another part of the sewers where they found a teenage boy lying on the ground all beaten up and depressed.

"Gary?" gasped Ash as he went over and helped him up.

"Loser boy, uh, I mean Ash! Is that you?" asked Gary in a weak voice.

"Why you little.." grumbled Ash as he was about to strangle his long lost rival until Misty stopped him.

"It's great to see you again Ash", said Gary as Cameron and Brock helped him back onto his feet. "And I'm sorry I called you the L word just now. It was just an old reflex. You're not the loser. I am!" and he started to cry.

"This is certainly a side of you I've never seen before", said Ash as he handed Gary a tissue.

"It's true!" sobbed Gary as he blew his nose. "Just today those Rockets had finally found our hidden base and they came and apprehended all the rebels, even poor Grandpa! I tried to stop them, but those Rockets' great number of Pokemon were no match against mine! I became so shattered that I took Togepi and ran away into the darkness where the Rockets couldn't find us! I failed you Grandpa! Please forgive me!"

"Hey, don't worry about it Gary", said Ash. "You did all you could do. At least you've managed to escape so you could tell us what's going on."

"And you've protected my Togepi as well", smiled Misty. "Thank you Gary and Togepi thanks you too."

"Pi", smiled Togepi as it blew a kiss to the now smiling Gary.

"Thank's guys", said Gary sobbing. "Ash, you truly are a great guy. I'm just sorry to tell you that those Rockets even took your Mom too."

"MOM!" cried Ash. "No, who knows what those devils are doing to her right now! Come on everyone, let's storm their castle!"

"But we just can't come charging at that impenetrable fortress without a plan of action", said Jenny. "No doubt that they'll shoot us with everything they've got the minute we set foot on their so-called royal welcome mat!"

"If only we have some way to get in there undetected", said Brock. "Like teleporting."

"Gary, you have an Alakazam, don't you?" asked Cameron. "Maybe it can teleport us all into the castle."

"Didn't you ever think that if I had an Alakazam, I could teleport us all out of this trapped town?!" cried out Gary. I've taught my Alakazam so many powerful attacks that I made it forget its own original teleportation powers. What a dummy I am!"

"Wait a minute", smiled Seymour. "I just remembered. I think I may have something that might help." And he reached into his labcoat and pulled out a TM that read TM 30.

"That's a teleport TM", said Cameron amazed.

"Exactly", smiled Seymour. "This'll help your Alakazam relearn teleport so we can get into the palace."

"What do you say Gary?" asked Ash. "Teleport may not do any damage to enemies, but at least we'll be able to get in and save your Grandpa."

"Okay", smiled Gary as he released Alakazam. "Zammy", he said. "You're about to learn teleport again. But in order to do this, I'm gonna have to remove your confusion attack. Is that okay with you?"

"KAZAM!" replied Zammy while clanking the two spoons it was holding together.

* * * * * *

A few minutes later, somewhere in the Rocketville palace, a whole crowd of rebels had materialized magically. "Great job Zammy", smiled Gary as he pulled the proud Alakazam back into its Pokeball.

"We'd better be on our guard and be extra quiet everyone", whispered Jenny. "You never know where a Rocket will pop out in this huge place."

"We should know it's huge", moaned Stella. "We were forced to build it." Remembering that first horrible day when all the citizens were forced to build the entire palace like slaves.

"Don't look now", whispered Bill. "But I've spotted two Rockets around the corner."

The Rockets known as Knuckles and Bruiser were guarding a whole wall of locked doors. Actually Knuckles was playing with a paddleball while Bruiser was reading an anime version of Penthouse. "Oh, doesn't that catgirl look good when she's licking her fur?" said Brusier while drooling.

"Probably", said Knuckles who was concentrating on his paddleball. "Hey, I think I'm finally about to reach a thousand on this thing! 994, 995, 996...." Just then a cloud of blue pollen covered the two thugs making them sleepy. "998, YAWN!, 999, ZZZZZZZ!" snored Knuckles as he dropped the paddleball and fell asleep in his chair.

"Aw shoot", yawned Bruiser. "You almost made it. Well there's always next guard duty." And he went right to sleep too.

"Nice work VP", said Cameron as he patted his blushing Vileplume. Then our heroes rushed over to the sleeping Rockets and gazed at the hallway of many doors.

"Just look at all these locked doors", said Cameron. "And it looks like we'll need some kind of card key to open all of them."

"And I think I've found one", said Jenny as she handcuffed the sleeping Rockets and pulled out Knuckles's card key. Jenny approached the first door, slid the card key through it, and cautiously opened the door. To her delight, she saw about 20 girls that looked like her wearing ragged old police uniforms and eating bland prison food.

"Pallet Jenny?" asked one of the Jennies who had gray hair instead of blue. She was definitely the eldest of the Jennies.

"MOM!" cried Pallet Jenny as she hugged the woman tightly.

"Oh my child", cried The Elder Jenny. "I knew you'd find a way to get to us. We all never doubted you for a second these past five years. Isn't that right my children?"

"YEAH!" cried all the Jennies as they all got together and hugged a tear filled Pallet Jenny.

Once all the hugs were done, Pallet Jenny then put the card key through the rest of the doors and released all the imprisoned rebels. Stella was happy to be reunited with her circus staff, but as for Gary's cheerleading squad, that was a different story.

"Gary, Gary, that cowardly wreck. When trouble comes, he runs like heck!" grumbled the girls as they looked angrily at the red headed teen for deserting them when they got captured.

"Yes, you're right", moaned Gary as he hung his head down in shame. "I'm a flop as a rebel leader and even something unmentionable as a Pokemon master and friend."

"Oh Gary!" cried Prof. Oak happily as he walked out of his cell and hugged his grandson. "You've finally learned some humility! I couldn't be happier!"

"Grandpa", said Gary surprised. "You're not disappointed that I couldn't defeat the Rockets and I ran away and abandoned all of you?"

"You were no match for that strong horde of Rockets", smiled Prof. Oak. "I was just happy knowing that you and Togepi have gotten away safely. I'm very proud of you Grandson."

"Thanks Gramps", said Gary with happy tears. As they hugged. Prof. Oak looked at the other teen that was smiling at them.

"Ash, is that you?!" the Professor gasped as he saw how much that little boy who left Pallet many years ago had grown.

"Hi Professor", smiled Ash. "It's good to see you again."

"And it's really great to see you alive and looking well", smiled the Prof. "And I'm sure someone else here will be happy to see you too. Oh, Mrs. Ketchum!"

"Mom?" asked Ash nervously. Out of another open door stepped Mrs. Ketchum with sadness in her eyes.

"Ash?" she asked. "OH, ASH!" she screamed as she hugged her long lost son as tight as she could.

"OH MOM!" cried Ash who hugged her tight as well. Then released each other so they could get some air.

"Mom, I thought I'd never see you again!" cried Ash. "Did those mean Rockets hurt you? If they did, I'll...."

"Will you excuse me please?" cried Mrs. Ketchum as she ran back into her cell. Everyone became puzzled while Ash stepped in as well.

Ash found his Mom on the stone floor crying her eyes out. "Please don't cry Mom", said Ash as he placed his hands on her shoulders. "Everything'll be all right. I'm home now."

"It's not that!" sobbed Mrs. Ketchum, "It's just that I can't face you anymore. I don't deserve to be a mother at all!"

"Don't say that Mom", pleaded Ash. "You're the best Mom in the entire world."

"No I'm not!" cried Mrs. Ketchum. "The day you were captured by Team Rocket, I told your friends not to worry about it. I invited them home for lunch thinking Team Rocket would either let you go or you could get out of it yourself. What a horrible mistake I made! I should've gone with them to help free you. And now it's over five years and just look what happened. I'm a terrible mother!" and she started crying again.

"Please Mom", smiled Ash while wiping her tears away, "I want you to stop blaming yourself. After all, I guess it was kind of my fault too. All my life, I asked you to stop babying me and fussing over me all the time. I guess you finally gave me my request. But that's all in the past. I'm back here with you and I get to tell you how much I love you!" and he kissed his Mom.

"Oh Ash!" cried Mrs. Ketchum as she hugged her boy. "I'm never going to let you go again!"

"Thanks Mom", said Ash gasping for air. "But could you just let me loose a little right now?" Mrs. Ketchum blushed and released her son from her powerful hug.

"My little boy has really grown up!" smiled Mrs. Ketchum. "And just look at you. You should be wearing a warm shirt over that tank top. You might catch a flu bug! And that ponytail! Don't they have barbers at wherever you've been all this time?! And have you also been changing your you-know-whats? I hope you haven't been wearing the same ones all these years!"

"Aw, Mom", laughed Ash while everyone laughed as well. "If only Pikachu could see us now. That's right, we've gotta find Pikachu!"

"And my Mr. Mime!" said Stella.

"And my Clefairy family!" said Seymour. "Where could they be?"

"They might be right behind that huge door", said Mrs. Ketchum. "While I was in my cell, I saw those awful Rockets take the rebel's Pokemon through it. And I saw tons of Pokemon locked in cages before the door closed."

"There's only one way to find out", said Jenny as she took the Rockets' card key and slid it through. The door opened and sure enough, there were tons of Pokemon locked in cages of all sizes either in groups or in solitary. They were all the Pokemon that the Rockets had taken from the citizens and the captured rebels. All the rebels saw the Pokemon they recognized and they opened the cages and released them.

Seymour then grew tears at the sight he saw. A whole family of Clefairies and Clefables locked up in one big cage. "My family!" cried Seymour as he released his own Clefairy and Clefable from their Pokeballs and they ran up and unlocked the cage. All the Clefairies and Clefables cheered as they hugged the long lost members of their clan. Even their adopted member as they piled on top of Seymour while he was laughing happily.

"Is this young man your boyfriend Jenny?" The Elder Jenny asked her daughter while smiling. Pallet Jenny just shyly nodded.

Stella looked around all the cages desperately trying to find her Mr. Mime, until one of her circus girls called out. "Hey Stella, over here!" Stella rushed over to where her girls were and found that they had released a Ponyta, Rapidash, Machoke, Dodrio, and six little Exeggcutes.

"It's all the Pokemon from my circus!" cried Stella as she hugged each and every one of them. "But where's Mr. Mime?" and she looked around in panic.

Ash was also storming around the cages trying to find his Pikachu but with no luck. Suddenly, he heard a familiar sound. "KRAB, KRAB!" it said. Ash turned around and smiled as he saw a cute little crab locked in a small cage. "Krabby!" he cried as he released it. "It's so good to see you again!"

"KRABBY!" it wailed as it patted Ash on the shoulder with its claw.

"MUK!" called out another familiar voice. Ash turned around again and found a huge pile of living sludge sealed up in a glass cage.

"Muk! Is that you?!" smiled Ash as he put Krabby down and opened Muk's cage. Ash was preparing to hug his Muk not caring how slimy and smelly it was. But instead it slithered past Ash and tackled Prof. Oak for it missed its caretaker very much.

"Yes, I'm glad to see you too Muk!" groaned the Professor as he tried to climb out of the messy muck. "It's a good thing I lived in the sewers for five years, because your smell doesn't bother me anymore!"

"MUK!" laughed Muk as it kept hugging the Professor almost breaking his back. Ash smiled at the loving but yucky scene until he heard a bunch of loud MOOOS! He turned around and found another memorable group of Pokemon that he once caught in the Safari Zone and sent back to Prof. Oak.

"Hey all you Tauros!" smiled Ash as he saw over 20 of them locked in the huge cage. "You should all be roaming free in wide open spaces. Not in a cramped cage indoors!" and he quickly released them and then noticed something on all the Tauros's butts. They had the letter R branded on all of them.

"OH! Those Rockets!" shouted Ash thinking of 1001 uses for two dead Rockets and a dead Meowth.

Cameron went around freeing every imprisoned Pokemon he saw until he came across a huge tank that contained two very familiar Pokemon. "Tentacruel and Kingler?" asked Cameron. "But why aren't you with Reiko?"

Tentacruel and Kingler started to wail very loudly while their tears floated around in the water. Cameron quickly undid the latch on the tank door and the two Pokemon climbed out telling Cameron their sad story about their beloved master in their own languages.

"I can't understand what you're both saying", said Cameron nervously. "But I just know that something terrible has happened to Reiko! Did the Rockets find out she wanted to defect?!" Tentacruel and Kingler nodded a sad yes.

"Oh no!" cried Cameron. "Who knows what they'll do to her!" and he ran up to the group and told them the news.

"This is terrible!" said Misty. "If the Rockets like to mistreat innocent civilians, who knows what they could do to a traitor!"

"Not only that!" cried Ash. "I can't find Pikachu anywhere in this room! What have they done to my Pikachu?!!!"

"Ash, calm down", said Misty. "Pikachu must be around here somewhere. Jessie and James were after him for many years so someone valuable as him must be hidden in a special place."

"And what about my Mr. Mime!" cried Stella. "Did they put him in a special place too? Or since he was so disobedient, did those Rockets k.. k.... Kill him?!!"

"No, don't say that Stella", said Brock holding her tight. "You believed for five long years that your Mime would be all right, so don't lose that hope now!"

"All right, thank you Brock", said Stella wiping the tears from her eyes.

"And we have to find my DNA chamber too!" said Bill. "It may not be alive, but it's important to me and to my Rattata too!"

"And don't forget all the Clefairies and Clefables' Moonstones", added Seymour.

"And Reiko", said Cameron. "We gotta find her before it might be too late!"

"All right everyone", said Pallet Jenny. "It looks like we'll have to search this entire palace until we find all of our treasures along with apprehending the Rocket Trio. But first, we have to get all these people and their Pokemon out of here."

"I'll lead everyone out of the palace", said The Elder Jenny. "While you and your little squadron continue with your own missions."

"Thank you Mother", said Pallet Jenny as she gathered around Ash, Misty, Brock, Stella, Seymour, Bill, and Cameron.

"Let all my Tauros lead the way", said Ash. "In case any Rockets jump out in front of you."

"Thank you young citizen", said The Elder Jenny as she saluted him and the group he was with.

"Good luck honey", said Mrs. Ketchum as she kissed Ash. "Stay safe."

"I will Mom", smiled Ash kissing her back. "Don't worry."

Then all the Tauros started to charge out of the hallway while the Jennies, Gary, Prof. Oak, Mrs. Ketchum, Ash's squadron, and the rest of the rebels and their Pokemon followed behind them.

"All right, there's no time to lose", said Ash in a serious voice. "We gotta turn this rotten palace from top to bottom until we find our loved ones!"

"Maybe you two can help us", said Cameron as he looked at Tentacruel and Kingler. The two Pokemon nodded, headed over to the other side of the hallway and waved at our heroes wanting them to follow.

* * * * * *

Meowth had just stepped out of the little kitten's room using James's boxer shorts to wipe his hands. "I wondered what humans used these things for", he said as he tossed them on the floor leaving dirty paw prints on the bottoms. Just then, he saw a small dustcloud coming from the hallway. "Is that maid service?" Meowth wondered. But it wasn't "MEOWTH!!" cried Meowth as he dropped his jaw at what he saw. A whole herd of Tauros were charging right at him. He tried to get out of the way but the Tauros trampled over the poor cat. Then a group of people trampled over him as well. And finally a whole bunch of Pokemon. When Meowth got up, he was completely covered with footprints, pawprints, horseshoe prints, fin prints, and all sorts of other prints. Including sludge prints from Muk. He became shocked again at what he saw. That charging mob had busted down the front doors of the palace. "Jessie'll probably blame me for this", Meowth said worried as he ran to find her and James.

The now insane Giovanni found the palace doors open once the chaos had cleared. He quickly stepped in and ran through the hallway. "I hope I can find my dear ex-employes", he giggled. "And I hoped I'm dressed properly too." And he tucked his undershirt tail into his underpants.

* * * * * *

Tentacrurel and Kingler had led our heroes to another big door with a metal sign next to it. Cameron read it out loud. "Caution. In this room is the source of our valued electric wall. Only professional Rocket scientists (NO PUN INTENDED) are allowed in this room. If you're a Rocket with a low I.Q, get the BLANK away from it! And if you're a rebel spy, please forget you ever read this."

"Jessie, James, and Meowth definitely must've wrote this", sighed Misty.

"Let's see if this thing will work again", said Jenny as she slipped the card key through the door, but it still stayed locked. "I guess the Rocket that owned this key was one of the low I.Q. ones", she sighed.

"Can you use crabhammer to knock it down Kingler?" asked Cameron.

"KING!" smiled Kingler as it started shaking its huge claw around and then whacked at the steel door causing it to fall on the floor.

"Nice job Kingler", smiled Cameron. "Reiko would be proud of you." "KING!" said Kingler smiling while blushing.

As they all walked into the room, Cameron looked down at the metal door and asked. "Is anyone under there?" For he knew that usually sometimes happens in cartoons. He looked up and joined everyone at an amazing sight, especially for Seymour and Bill. It was Bill's DNA chamber being powered by a big pile of Moonstones.

"So this is what those awful Rockets have been using the Clefairy Clan's sacred Moonstones for", said Seymour sadly. "To power up the DNA chamber to create that electric wall. Oh, the humanity!"

"But my DNA chamber's only function is to combine two life forms into one", said Bill. "How did they ever make it into an electric wall generator?"

"Maybe we'll find out when we look at what's behind these two doors", said Brock as he pushed the button to chamber 1. The door slid open and out stumbled a jester-like Pokemon who fell to the floor and made a mournful, "MIME!"

"MR. MIME!" cried Stella as she ran over and hugged her long lost Pokemon to death. "Oh Mr. Mime!" she cried. "It must've been terrible for you being trapped in that cramped chamber for over 5 years! And I know how clausterphobic you get too!"

"Mime?" asked Mr. Mime. Seymour went over and examined Mr. Mime thoroughly. "I'm afraid he doesn't remember a thing Stella", explained Seymour.

"What do you mean?" asked Stella.

"It's seems like Mr. Mime was put in suspended animation these past five years making him unaged. And releasing him from the chamber woke him up."

"Oh Mr. Mime!" cried Stella again. "I'm sorry for all those times I whipped you, yelled at you, and trained you many hours of the night when I still had my circus! Losing you for 5 and a half long years really taught me a lesson. Can you ever forgive me and accept me as your master again?!"

"Mime, mime!" smiled Mr. Mime as he wiped the tears from Stella's eyes and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you Mr. Mime", cried Stella with joy. "And to show you that I'll keep my promise..." She took out her whip and a pair of clippers, cut the whip into tiny harmless pieces and threw them out the nearby window. Mr. Mime became so happy that he started doing a happy mime dance.

Our heroes smiled as they watched Stella and Mr. Mime hug each other happily. Everyone except Ash though. "I just wish I could do the same thing to my Pikachu!" he sighed. "We've gotta find him now!"

"Isn't it obvious my still clueless-as-usual friend?" smiled Misty as she pushed the button on chamber 2. The door opened and there sitting in the darkness was Ash's long lost best friend.

"PIKACHU!" cried Ash in his deep teenage voice as he picked up Pikachu who looked like he was asleep.

"Pika?" asked Pikachu as he woke up from his 5 and a half year long sleep and looked at the strange teenage boy who was holding him. "Hi Pikachu", he said with tears in his eyes.

"PIKACHU!" cried Pikachu in fear as he thundershocked the teen causing Ash to drop him onto the floor and then run into a corner shaking.

"Pikachu, it's me Ash", he pleaded. "I may look different to you, but I am still your master and best friend. Just in an older body. Please Pikachu! You've got to recognize me! I've missed you for 5 and a half long years!"

"Pika, Pi?" said Pikachu as he cautiously looked into the familiar eyes of the stranger. He slowly approached Ash and gave him a little sniff. "PIKACHU!" shouted a happy Pikachu as he jumped back into Ash's hands and thundershocked him. This time as a sign of affection.

"Oh, how I missed your shocking ways", cried Ash as he hugged Pikachu for many minutes. "Pika, Pi!" cried Pikachu for the dynamic duo had finally been reunited.

"Now things'll definitely be like the show once again", thought Cameron now that he saw Ash and his Pikachu back together again.

"I told you Pikachu was probably in that chamber", said Misty also smiling with joy.

"Yes, it looks like Pikachu's been in suspended animation also", said Seymour as he studied Pikachu. "He hasn't aged a bit either."

"How could those #$!% Rockets put Pikachu in that horrible contraption?!" cried Ash.

"Hey, I invented that contraption!" protested Bill. "And the Rockets were the ones that made it horrible!" He leapt up onto the control panel and studied it. "It seems like those Rockets had programmed my invention to harness Pikachu's electricity and Mr. Mime's barrier power to create that electric wall!"

"I can't believe those fiends would use my poor Mime for an evil scheme to harm an entire innocent town", moaned Stella.

"It's okay babe", said Brock massaging her shoulders. "You're reunited with your Mime and that's all that matters right now."

"Thank you Brock", sighed Stella as she hugged her Mr. Mime along with her boyfriend.

"There we go", said Bill as he finished making some adjustments on the control panel, jumped off of it and stepped into chamber 1. "I need one of you to close this chamber door and activate the big red button on the control panel. That way I can become human again at last. Who would like to do the honor?"

"Why don't you do it Cameron?" asked Brock. "It's because of you we've all gotten this far."

"Okay", said Cameron blushing as he closed the chamber that Bill was in and pushed the red button. Suddenly, lights started flashing all over the machine while sparks started to fly out of it like mad. "I bet Buzz would love this sight", thought Cameron but then remembered that Buzz had way too much to eat today. An entire electric wall was about a year of square meals.

Once the sparks had stopped, Cameron opened the door to chamber 1. Everyone waited for the humanized Bill to come out. But instead, more smoke came out and the same Rattata form crawled out of it all dizzy and drowsy. "Oh no, it didn't work", cried Misty as she picked up the rat. "I'm sorry Bill."

"Rattata!" said the Rattata in a squeaky voice. Misty became surprised and then looked into its red eyes. The natural eye-color all Rattatas are supposed to have.

"You're not Bill", said Misty.

"No Bill's suffocating in this chamber right now!" called out Bill's voice from chamber 2. "And is it just me or has this chamber suddenly gotten cramped?!" Cameron quickly approached chamber 2, pushed the button and the door slid open. Out came more smoke along with a dark green-haired man wearing a fancy suit.

"Bill?" asked everyone.

"I can't believe it!" smiled a tear filled Bill as he looked at his furless human hands. "I got 10 digits again!" He quickly pulled off his shoes and counted his toes. "And the same goes for my toes! And I got a smooth bottom again!" he said as he felt no tail on his butt. "YAHOO! HOORAY! GRAY SKIES ARE GONNA CLEAR UP!!!" he sang as he danced around like crazy while everyone smiled. "I'm no longer in that horrible Rattata's body!"

"RATTATA!" shouted the angry Rattata who leapt out of Misty's arms and shook its fist at Bill.

"Oh sorry Rattie", said Bill blushing as he picked it up. "I didn't mean you were horrible, I meant the horrible experience of what we both went through. I bet it was a nightmare for you having me be the dominant brain of your own body. I'm just glad you're safe and we're finally separated but still together again."

"Rattata!" cried Rattie for it was just happy to be its own Pokemon again.

"Congratulations Bill", said Cameron. "We're all so happy for you."

"AYE!" they all smiled at once.

"Thank you my friends", said Bill. "I'm just glad we're all reunited with the people, Pokemon, and the things we love."

"Not quite yet", said Cameron. "We still haven't found Reiko!"

"CRUEL, KING!" agreed both Tentacruel and Kingler.

"You're right", said Jenny. "And the Rocket Trio is still loose somewhere in this palace. Who knows what they're planning?!"

"Well then let's get searching for them!" shouted Ash. "I bet you'd love to shock them to death Pikachu."

"PIKACHU!" growled Pikachu as he made a tough-guy face, charged himself up, and sped out of the room while everyone followed.

When everyone had left the room, Giovanni had come in. He saw the DNA chamber that was left on my mistake. Gio took out a Pokeball while making the biggest sinister smile in cartoon history.

* * * * * *

Our heroes were now running all over the place trying to find the Rocket Trio. "Now where would 3 fake monarchs hang out in a place like this?" asked Stella.

"Cameron, you fell into Meowth's bedroom when you first came to our world", said Brock. "Maybe you might know where it is."

"I can't really remember", said Cameron. "I was too scared being wrapped up in Arbok's coils to notice where I was being taken." Just then, a strange looking vacuum tube started to drop down from the ceiling. Everyone stopped in fright as the large tube started sniffing our heroes.

"What is that thing?!" cried Misty who just jumped into Ash's arms.

Ash just blushed but then came back down to Earth. "I don't know, but it's messing with the wrong guys. Pikachu, take care of that worm with a thunderbolt!"

"PIKACHU!" shouted Pikachu as he sent a current of electricity through the tube but didn't affect it at all.

"That tube's made of rubber Ash!" said Seymour nervously. "Electricity can't affect it!"

Then the tube stopped as it sniffed Cameron. It made a great big smile and started up its vacuum power sucking the boy into it. "CAMERON!" our heroes all shouted as the tube slid back up the ceiling.

Cameron then found himself sliding down and getting pulled up through all sorts of crazy glass tubes until he finally landed on what looked like a gym floor. He found his glasses lying on the floor and put them on.

"It's amazing", he thought. "Ever since I got here, I've been falling on my face, getting beaten up, and drowning to death and my glasses still remain unbroken. Maybe it's a cartoon thing." He then looked around and saw that he was in a huge gym where a smoke bomb went off and 3 figures were standing in the darkness. When they cleared, Cameron saw a very unwelcome sight.

"Welcome to Troubleland!" called out Jessie.

"Make it Doubleland!" called out James.

Jessie: "To protect our kingdom from twerpy boys!"  
James: "To silence them from their rebellious noise!"  
Jessie: "To denounce the evils of freedom and peace!"  
James: "To keep our crowns and this palace's lease!"  
Jessie: "Queen Jessie!"  
James: "King James!"  
Jessie: "Roayl Rockets blasting off at the speed of light, light, light!"  
James: "Don't bother surrendering, cause we're challenging you to a fight!"

"That's right!" shouted Meowth as he appeared in a referee's uniform and whistle.

"What have you done to Reiko?!" shouted Cameron angrily.

"You'll find out when we feel like showing you", laughed Jessie wickedly. "So we meet again, you bothersome little twerp. And we saw how you brought back the original twerp too!"

"You've really made our happy life of tyranny a living heck!" said Meowth.

"Well anyway", said Jessie. "We brought you here alone to make you a little proposition."

"What kind?" asked Cameron.

"We've noticed while you were traveling, you were making stops at Pokemon gyms collecting badges", said James.

"And we just know you would love to get your boney little fingers on this!" smiled Jessie as she held up a badge that was in the shape of a green leaf.

"An EarthBadge!" gasped Cameron.

"It has a brain" said Meowth with a pretend surprised look.

"Yes Mr. Fusterman", said Jessie evily. "We managed to save up an extra EarthBadge just before our old Viridian Gym exploded and we haven't found anyone worthy enough to give it to. But that all has changed since we met you."

"Yes", said James. "You've certainly made our dull lives of ruling very exciting. Painful, but still exciting. And we're gonna let you have it!"

"Really?" said Cameron not liking where all this might lead.

"All you have to do is beat us in a 6 against 6 Pokemon match and the badge is yours and we'll leave this town forever!" said Jessie.

"But if you lose, you'll have to join Team Rocket and become our new personal intern", said Meowth. "And my litter box hasn't been changed in over 10 months!"

"And this will be the uniform you'll wear from now on!" laughed James as he held up a black tutu with an R on it.

Cameron gulped and said. "What if I refuse?"

"I was hoping you'd ask that", laughed Jessie as she pressed a button on a remote and the wall on the left slide slid open. Cameron became shocked and frightened at what he saw. It was the world's largest paper shredder and hanging above it from a hook was Reiko tied up and gagged.

"REIKO!" cried Cameron.

"MGMLFL!" mumbled Reiko.

"That's right twerp", laughed Jessie. "One of the first rules of being our intern is to never doublecross us. Just like poor misguided Reiko up there."

"Now we'll have to terminate her employment form along with her", said James as he started up the shredder, threw Reiko's form in there while poor Reiko herself was being lowered down slowly into the spinning blades.

"NO STOP!" pleaded Cameron. "Okay, I'll battle you! Just don't hurt her!"

"MRGLMF!" mumbled Reiko with tears in her eyes at what Cameron was about to go through.

"Excellent", smiled Jessie evily. "Now get up on that podium over there and we'll begin what might be the most crucial battle in your entire insignificant life!"

Cameron slowly walked up onto the huge podium on one side while the trio went to their podium on the other side. Reiko was mumbling like crazy begging Cameron not to do this.

"I'm sorry Reiko", said Cameron sadly. "I just can't let you die. But I am gonna win this one for you!"

"GMDLMKMS", mumbled Reiko which meant, "Good luck Cameron-san!"

TO BE CONTINUED

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Uh oh! It looks like this is no mere Gameboy battle for Cameron. This time it's a life or death battle! Who will win, but most importantly, who will survive?! Stay tuned to find out. It's gonna be big!


	25. The Conclusion

The Incredible Poke-Odyssey chapter 25

The Conclusion

Cameron was standing on a tall podium overlooking a huge gym floor while on the other side, were Jessie, James, and Meowth standing on their own podium as well. They were about to have a huge Pokemon match so Cameron could win an EarthBadge and to save Reiko, who was bound and gagged, from being torn to bloody bits by a giant paper shredder. Cameron could feel the sweat pouring from his head and down to his shoes.

"We'll have a 6 against 6 match, no time limit", said Meowth who blew his whistle while in a referee's uniform. Let the bloodfest begin!"

"All right, ladies first", smiled Jessie as she took out a Pokeball.

"Jessie", asked James. "Where is this lady? And is there room on this podium for four of us?"

"GRRRRR!" growled Jessie as she whacked James on the head with a mallet. James picked up the mallet and saw his face print on it from all the times Jessie used it on him.

"I guess you earned some retirement Mr. Mallet", said a dazed James.

"All right kid, no more stalling", shouted Jessie. "I choose you Kadabra!" and she released the first Pokemon of the match that made out a loud, "KADABRA!"

"I know what'll be good against Kadabra", said Cameron. "Another psychic type. Slowie, I choose you!" and he released Slowking right in front of Kadabra. Slowie turned around and waved at his Mamma. "No Slowie, pay attention!" commanded Cameron.

"Kadabra, use your psybeam on that little dunce while its back is turned", commanded Jessie.

"Slow?" asked Slowie as he turned around and suddenly got hit by a psychic beam that Kadabra had released.

"SLOWIE!" cried Cameron. "Quick, use your blizzard attack!"

"Kadabra, start teleporting!" commanded Jessie.

"SLOW!" called out Slowie as he blasted an icy blizzard all over the place, but Kadabra just kept teleporting out of the way. Slowie was just no match against Kadabra in the speed dept. Cameron then remembered something in his backpack. He reached in and pulled out the X-Speed device that Aya had given him. "Here Slowie, this should help you!" called out Cameron as he aimed the device's beam at his Slowking.

"SLOWKING!" shouted Slowie as he felt an incredible burst of speed surge through his pink body. He was finally able to hit Kadabra freezing it in a block of ice. "MGMLLF!" cried Reiko in what sounded like a happy mumble.

"You can thank your sister for giving me this device", Cameron smiled.

"This wasn't supposed to happen!" growled Jessie as she pulled the frozen Kadabra back into its ball.

"Who'd ever thought that kid would have a bag of tricks?" grumbled Meowth.

"Well it's my turn now", smiled James as he sprayed some Pokemon repel potion on his head.

"If you're gonna release who I think, you'd better spray me as well!" ordered an annoyed Jessie.

"What's with the hairspray?" wondered Meowth as he watched James spray his queen.

"And now it's time to earn your fertilizer Victreebel!" smiled James as he released his plant. But instead, it started to eat up Meowth.

"HEY!" he mumbled from inside Victreebel's mouth. "Why didn't you spray me too?!"

"You never asked us", sighed James as he pulled Meowth free.

"I think you might prefer a delicious water-type Pokemon like him", smiled James as he threw Victreebel right onto Slowie's head.

"Oh no!" gasped Cameron.

"Oh yes!" giggled James. "Now use your mega drain on that so-called king!"

"BEL!" cried Victreebel as it lifted Slowie up and started sucking him dry.

"NO!" cried Cameron. "Slowie, return!" He shouted as he pulled the drained Slowie back into its ball. Just then, he saw Reiko being lowered just a little into the shredder. "What are you doing?!" Cameron cried. "The match isn't over yet!"

"Oh, I forgot to tell you", smiled Jessie. "Every time one of your Pokemon loses, Little Miss Ninja up there will get lowered inch by inch. And when your sixth Pokemon loses, well.... Let's say we'll lose one ex-intern and gain a new intern, which'll be you!"

"MNGLMLF!" cried Reiko in fear of dying but in more fear of Cameron's future.

An angry and determined Cameron then reached for his next Pokeball. "VP, I choose you next!" he shouted and released Vileplume right in front of Victreebel.

"Oooooh, Victreebel Vs. Vileplume!" smiled James. "Or better yet. VVV. Okay Vic, prune that posey with razor leaf! Victreebel complied by shooting out razor sharp leaves at VP making it cry out in pain.

"VP, use your cut attack!" shouted Cameron. VP started spinning around like a buzzsaw ready to show Victreebel who was the top plant in this battle. Victreebel screamed as it started hopping away from the spinning little shredder. Victreebel jumped right on top of James's head wanting him to protect it.

"NO VICKIE!" cried James as he tried to pull it off his head. "I got repel potion on me!" Victreebel took one whiff of James and totally fainted.

"It's time I give this brat a severe tongue lashing!" shouted Jessie angrily. "Lickitung, you're up next!" and out popped Lickitung who had its tongue sticking out ready to humiliate the smiling plant.

"VP, sleep powder!" commanded Cameron.

"Lickie, supersonic!" commanded Jessie.

"LICKIE!" shouted Lickie as it released sonic waves at VP causing it to stumble around all confused. It tried to release its sleep powder, but it fell over and the powder landed on VP putting itself to sleep.

"No, VP!" cried Cameron as he saw VP sleeping while Reiko got lowered some more. He sucked the sleeping Vileplume back into its Pokeball.

"You got only 4 left kid!" said Meowth. "You better do some thinking or is that too much of a chore for you?! HA HA HA!"

"Let's see how you can handle military power!" said Cameron. "Buzz, you're up next!" And out popped Electabuzz who was looking healthier after his huge electric wall meal. He saluted Cameron and let out a, "BUZZ EL BUZZ!"

"Let's see if I can remove those stripes from your little private", laughed Jessie. "Lickie, use your wrap attack!" Lickie complied by shooting out its tongue completely tying up and squeezing Buzz to death.

"OH NO!" gasped Cameron thinking about the gross situation Buzz was in. Being wrapped up in that wet, slobbery tongue. "Wet? That's it!" smiled Cameron. "Buzz, send Mr. Lickitung a little thundershock through that tongue of his, won't you?" Buzz smiled and winked at his master. He charged himself up a little and that tiny thundershock caused Lickie to yelp and let go of Buzz. Lickie started to rub its singed tongue back to health.

"Lickitung, don't let that dim bulb defeat you like that!" shouted Jessie. "Show 'em your own thunderbolt attack!" "LICKIE!" shouted Lickitung as it shot a thunderbolt at Buzz causing him to flinch a little.

"Buzz, show it you're the real master of electric types", said Cameron. "Strike back with your thunderbolt!" Buzz released a thunderbolt causing it to push back at Lickie's bolt. The two bolts started to push at each other for a half a minute, but Buzz being a pure electric type and had just filled up on a giant electric wall had a much stronger bolt. He sent it back to Lickie causing it to shout, "LICKIE!" and faint. Buzz just proudly saluted his master once again. "Nice work Private", said Cameron proudly.

"This can't be!" shouted Jessie as she sucked Lickie back into its ball.

"I'm up to bat next Jess", said James. "Let's see if that Buzzbrain is a match against Weezing!" and he released the two-headed ball of gas into the ring.

"Okay Buzz, give it, or is it them?, your thunderpunch attack!" commanded Cameron wondering if Weezings had two brains. Buzz made a sparkling fist and was about to punch Weezing's lights out.

"Weezing, sludge attack!" commanded James. Weezing shot a ball of sludge into Buzz's face causing him to go blind and end up missing his target. "Now finish it off with a tackle attack!" smiled James. And that's what Weezing did.

"Poor Buzz", cried Cameron as he pulled back the defeated Buzz. "And poor Reiko too!" gasped Cameron as he saw Reiko get lowered a bit more.

"Just three more loses and you're gonna lose that girl", laughed Meowth.

"All right, Donnie, I choose you!" said Cameron as he released his Donphan who made a loud trumpeting sound.

"Weezing", commanded James as he and his teammates were holding their ears. "Silence that beast with a hyper beam. "WEEZING!" shouted Weezing as it opened its main mouth and shot out a powerful beam at Donnie.

"Oh no! Donnie's toast for sure!" cried Cameron as he covered his eyes for he knew hyper beam is the worlds' most dangerous attack. One strike and the victim's finished. Cameron peeked a little and he was surprised at what he saw. Weezing was still spewing out its hyper beam but Donnie was just standing there unharmed and still looking tough. "What's that Donphan made of?" wondered Cameron as he aimed his Pokedex at Donnie.

"Endure", replied Dexeena. "When a Pokemon calls on the power of endure, it can withstand even the most power attacks including hyper beam."

Cameron then remembered all the times when Donnie was in battle. Most of the attacks that were launched at Donnie never seemed to harm him. Even when he fell into that lava pit in Blaine's gym, Donnie didn't even have a mark. "Wow, what a great power to have", smiled Cameron as he watched Weezing run out of hyper beam energy. "Okay Donnie, finish it off with a tusk attack!" commanded Cameron. Donnie trumpeted and started charging at the tired Weezing.

"Why didn't hyper beam work?!" gasped James. "I definitely must get the money back for that TM."

"Never mind that now!" shouted Meowth. "Do something before that jumbo creams your Weezing!"

"Oh right", said James. "Weezing, poison gas attack!" But Weezing was still charging itself up from that powerful attack so it couldn't use poison gas. Then Donnie punctured Weezing with his sharp tusk.

"WEEEZZZIINNG!" cried Weezing as it popped and started flying all over the place like a balloon. It landed right at James's feet all flat and deflated.

"Don't worry Weezing", said James as he pulled it back into its ball. "I know the name of a good tire repairman."

"I guess its time for the brains of the group to step back in!" said Jessie.

"Does that make me the brawn?" asked James.

"You wish!" grumbled Jessie as she released her Arbok.

"Okay Donnie, use your rollout attack", commanded Cameron. Donnie rolled up into his tire form and was about to squish Arbok into a snake skin rug.

"Quick Arbok, leap out of the way!" commanded Jessie. "ARBOK!" said Arbok as it curled up like a spring and bounced right out of the way of the approaching tire. "No give it your fissure attack!" smiled Jessie evily. Arbok then landed sharply on the floor sending a current of power right towards Donnie. The floor exploded and Donnie went flying up in the air and then landed on the floor knocking him out. Then Reiko's rope got lowered once again.

"This is bad!" cried Cameron as he watched as his Pokemon got hurt one by one while Reiko's life was on the line. "Those guys leave me no choice. Aero, finish off that snake!" And out popped the huge Aerodactyl that made Arbok look like a tiny worm.

"Is that what I think it is?!" gasped James.

"An Aerodactyl!" said Meowth shaking. "Haven't those things died out yet?!"

"Don't worry boys", said Jessie. "It'll be an honor to make this one extinct! Arbok, poison sting attack!" Arbok fired its glowing needles at Aero, but they didn't seem to affect her one bit for she had skin made of stone.

"That Medusa Stone you touched certainly was a Godsend", smiled Cameron while Aero smiled back at him.

"It's just a shame that its nostrils aren't protected", laughed Jessie. "Arbok, use your toxic attack!" "ARBOK!" shouted Arbok as it shot a green toxic cloud out of its mouth.

"Quick Aero, fire blast now!" shouted Cameron. "AERO!" shouted Aero as she blasted her fire right at the approaching toxic before it could leave Arbok's mouth. It made such a huge explosion causing Arbok to get thrown back and knocked out.

"No, Arbok!" shouted Jessie as she called it back.

"It looks like you guys only have one Pokemon left", said Meowth. "And this one better be good for our sakes."

"You mean for your sake", said Jessie as she grabbed the cat and threw him onto the gym floor.

"They're sending Meowth to battle Aero?!" wondered Cameron. "I didn't think they were this dumb."

"Are you crazy?!" screamed Meowth. "I'm no match against that rocky horror!"

"Relax my dear Meowth", smiled Jessie. "I got just the prescription you'll need." And she pulled out a pair of stone tongs that was holding a very familiar stone.

"A Medusa Stone!" gasped Cameron along with Aero.

"Here, catch!" called out Jessie as she dropped the stone into Meowth's paws.

"Ooooh! Neat!" smiled Meowth as he started playing with it like a ball of yarn. Suddenly, Meowth stopped playing for he found his paws turning to stone. "What did you do to me Jess?!" cried Meowth as he saw his soft fur turning to hard stone. Then he started growing and growing until he was a 30 foot tall stone Meowth.

"Wow, a concrete kitty!" whispered James.

"This is better I ever imagined", giggled Jessie. "What do you think of your new form Meowth?"

"Meowth? Uh, Meowth?" said the stone Meowth as he tried to lick himself with his stone tongue, for his body may be big, but his brain was now small.

"Maybe this wasn't such a brilliant idea", said James. The Stone Meowth looked over and saw the tied up girl hanging over a shredder. He smiled as he ran over to her and started swatting her like a cat's string toy.

"REIKO!" cried Cameron.

"MGLMKF!" mumbled Reiko while being gently swatted around by Meowth's stone paws.

"What were you saying about this not being a brilliant idea James?" Jessie asked while smiling wickedly.

"Aero, take down now!" shouted Cameron. Aero flew as fast as she could at Stone Meowth knocking him back onto the gym floor while Reiko sighed of relief.

"Quick Meowth!" shouted James. "Use some kind of attack on that bird! Like a hairball or something!"

"MEOWTH!" said Meowth as he made some hacking noises and suddenly spat out 5 hairballs that were actually large boulders. They all hit Aero causing her to scream and fall onto the floor.

"Nice job Stone Meowth!" called out James. "Now give it your fury swipes!" Meowth complied by slashing his stone claws at the poor fainted Aero causing little pebbles to fall out of her skin.

"NO!" cried Cameron as he watched his Aerodactyl faint and then saw that Reiko was just one inch away from the shredder of death. Her feet were almost touching the spinning blades.

"You've got one Pokemon left to use twerp", laughed Jessie. "And I bet you're gonna use that small-fry Sandshrew of yours. Am I right?"

"Well, bring 'em out!" laughed James. "I bet Meowth hungers for a dirtball in his new form!"

Cameron looked at the Pokeball that contained his best friend. "I don't know what to do Sandy", he said. "I can't send you to battle that huge monster, you could get eaten or even worse. But if I give up, Reiko will die. I just don't know what to do!" Just then the Pokeball popped open and Sandy came out and hugged his master's leg letting out a comforting, "Shrew!"

"What's that Sandy?" asked Cameron as he saw Sandy pointing to the Stone Meowth while making a fist. "You want to fight? But you're a mouse and he's a giant stone cat, that's not very good odds unless you're a smart-alec mouse like Jerry."

"SHREW!" shouted Sandy as he leapt onto the gym floor not wanting any more arguments. "Good luck Sandy", said Cameron nervously.

"So the little pipsqueak wants to be the last minute savior", laughed Jessie. "It'll be a shame to stomp this little mouse's brave, yet stupid spirit. Right Meowth?"

"MEOWTH!" said Meowth as he quickly slammed his stone paw right over Sandy extremely hard.

"SANDY!" cried Cameron in grief. Meowth lifted up his paw and saw a hole in the floor with no sign of the Sandshrew. "MEOWTH?" said Meowth as he scratched his stone head while little stone question marks formed around him.

Cameron wondered if Sandy had used a quick dig attack to escape Meowth's paw. And sure enough, he did for Sandy had busted out from the floor right behind Meowth and landed right on top of his head.

"All right Sandy!" smiled Cameron with relief. But then became surprised at what Sandy was doing. He was beating up Meowth's head non-stop while bits of rocks were flying out like he was being demolished by a jackhammer. "I've never seen you use that kind of attack before", said Cameron as he took out his Pokedex again.

"Rock Smash", replied Dexeena. "A new attack that is very useful for fighting rock-type Pokemon or for removing giant boulders that are blocking your path."

"That's it Sandy!" smiled Cameron excitedly. "Keep on smashing him until he's his old mangy self again!"

"SHREW!" said Sandy as he continued with his smashing while Meowth moaned in pain.

"Meowth, you blockhead!" shouted Jessie. "What kind of cat are you, letting a little rodent like that getting the best of you?

"Yes!" shouted James. "You're disgracing all Meowthkind everywhere! Maybe we should get a Persian to the job better!"

"MEOWTH!" growled Meowth at what he just heard. He swatted the Sandshrew off of his head and felt his scalp that felt all chipped and bumpy.

"SANDY!" cried Cameron as he saw his Sandshrew about to hit the nearby wall. But Sandy just curled up like a ball and started bouncing all over the place like a piece of Flubber.

"Meowth?" said Meowth as he saw the ball zooming right towards his face. Sandy then uncurled and made a huge fist socking Meowth right straight in the eye. Cameron, Reiko, Jessie, and James stood silent at what was now happening. The big stone Meowth started to crumble and crack and finally collapsed into a big pile of rubble.

"SANDY!" cried Cameron as he quickly got down from the podium and rushed over to his Sandshrew who was lying on the pile of rocks panting hard, but smiling. "Sandy, you did it!" he sighed happily. "You've defeated Team Rocket's last and toughest Pokemon."

"SHREW!" smiled Sandy as he gave his master his trademark victory sign with his claw.

"Meowth!" cried both Jessie and James as they started to dig through the rubble to find the core of their ex-stone champion. There they found the original small furry Meowth with a rock stuck in his right eye. "Meowth, are you all right?" asked James.

"I think so", said Meowth. "Except that I think I have something in my eye. Can you pull it out?" James pulled the rock out of Meowth's eye, but then he and Jessie became horrified at the sight they just saw and quickly covered their mouths.

"What? What is it?" asked Meowth. He realized that he could only see out of one eye. He felt his right eye and found out that it was just an empty socket. "MY EYE!" he screamed. "MY EYE, AYE AYE AYE!!!"

"Meowth relax", pleaded Jessie as she inserted the rock back in Meowth's socket.

"How can I relax now that I lost one of my pupils?!" cried Meowth.

"Since when did you become a schoolteacher?" asked James.

Meowth just angrily scratched James's face for that dumb remark. "Watch it buster, or I'll make you just like me!" growled Meowth. "This is all your fault you rotten rodent!" he shouted while pointing a claw at Sandy and Cameron. "You and that crummy trainer of yours! Now I'm gonna make you pay!" and he took out a remote and was about to drop Reiko into the shredder.

"No you can't!" pleaded Cameron. "We beat you fair and square! That was the deal!"

"When it comes to beautiful Meowth's eyes, all deals are off!" shouted Meowth as he pushed the button and Reiko started to drop.

"NO REIKO!" cried Cameron. Just then, Reiko found herself hovering over the shredder and floating into Cameron arms. Cameron and Reiko turned around and saw it was Ash' Espeon who had just used his psychic powers to save Reiko.

"Nice work Espeon", called out Ash's voice. Cameron turned around and smiled as he saw Ash along with Misty, Brock, Stella, Seymour, and Bill along with Ryan, Lulu, Gary, and Prof. Oak.

"Thank you", said Cameron as he untied Reiko.

"Yes, Arigato", said Reiko humbly.

"Don't thank me", said Ash. "Thank Espeon over here."

"PI!" said Espeon proudly.

"I think it's time to blast off again!" said Jessie and James nervously as they grabbed a grieving Meowth and started to head off to their secret escape hatch. But couldn't for Espeon had used his psychic powers to bring the trio back and dropped them right in front of a boiling mad Ash.

"Uh, hi Ash!" said Jessie nervously. "Long time no see?"

"You've been certainly drinking your milk haven't you?" said James looking in fear at the muscles on the former twerp.

Ash just silently grabbed Jessie and James by the throats and lifted them up. "Ever since I first met you two scumbags, you've given us lots of grief during our Pokemon journey. But doing all this to my town and the people I love is very unforgivable!"

"You're not gonna kill us are you?" whimpered Jessie and James in fear.

"I won't kill you because it's ungentlemen to kill a lady!" Ash growled at Jessie and released her. "And I won't kill you James because like I said, it's ungentlemen to kill a lady!" And he threw him on the floor along with Meowth.

"Thank you!" said Jessie and James sweating of relief.

"But that doesn't count for me!" smiled Reiko as she gave her ex-queen a flying kick in the face causing her to lose a tooth and to fall on the floor. Then Reiko tackled James slamming his face onto the floor causing his nose to bleed. The former rulers of Rocketville looked at each other with a missing tooth, broken nose, and a rock for an eye feeling the greatest humility they've ever known in their lives.

Jenny walked proudly over to the defeated Rockets and said. "You three are under arrest for Pokemon stealing, town imprisoning, trying to capture a police officer and her company, and for attempted murder! You three will definitely get life for this!"

"And allow me to put them in jail for you officer", said a familiar voice. Everyone looked in fear at what they saw. A familiar scary shadow started to emerge from the darkness and connected to the shadow was an old enemy.

"MEWTWO?!" screamed everybody.

"But I thought you were dead!" gasped Misty as she held her Togepi tightly.

"Yes, the first Mewtwo is dead", smiled Mewtwo. "But it's a good thing I saved his body."

Ash suddenly recognized Mewtwo's new voice. "GIOVANNI!" he gasped.

"Aw, you gave me away", groaned Gio. "And I was saving that for a surprise! Oh well. And I want to thank you Bill."

"Thank me?" asked Bill nervously.

"Yes", smiled Gio evily. "For creating such a marvelous DNA chamber and for leaving it abandoned and left on. If you've only kept some of your smarts today, I wouldn't be in this wonderful destructive new body!"

"Oh dear!" said Bill while sweatdropping heavily on his Rattata.

Gio then looked at Jessie, James, and Meowth with a big scary smile. "So this is what you three little fools have been doing since I fired you." He laughed. "I'm glad to see you've made a tyrannical name for yourselves these past five and a half years. I'm very proud of you."

"You are Boss?" gasped the trio at once.

"Please, call me Gio", he laughed. "You don't work for me anymore. In fact, how you like to be partners with me in my new organization?"

"Really?" asked Jessie, James, and Meowth now smiling. Jessie hid her mouth with her hand because she now had an ugly bloody smile without her tooth.

"You mean we can be a foursome?" smiled James.

"And I can be your top cat once again?" asked Meowth while a tear ran out of the rock which was now his eye.

"Actually, I was thinking about a onesome", laughed Gio loud and hard. The trio didn't like the way he was laughing at all. Then Gio shot out Mewtwo's infamous mindjail beam at the trio causing them to scream, shrink down, and get sucked inside Gio's brain. Our heroes turned white at what they just saw.

"Perfect!" laughed Gio evily while sending surges of power through his stubby fingers. "Now that I have their conquering skills inside my head, I'll be able to conquer this entire planet! All people and Pokemon will have to bow down to me if they don't want their races to become extinct! HA HA HA HA HA!"

"Giovanni, you sick psycho!" shouted Ash. "We took care of you these past five years and this is how you repay us?!"

"Ungrateful, aren't I?" smiled Gio. "While I was a prisoner in the original Mewtwo's mind, I felt I had no hope, so I decided to just go mad. But now that I actually have control of the power of Mewtwo, I can go back to being myself. And my first task is to get rid of you Ash Ketchum!" And he charged up his hands and sent a psychic blast right at Ash knocking him into the wall.

"NO ASH!" cried Misty as she and the others ran to him. Gio just smiled and shot some more blasts at everyone.

"HA HA HA HA HA!" laughed Gio knowing that nobody can stop him now. Just then he heard a loud "SHREW!" Gio curiously looked down and saw a tiny Sandshrew wanting to battle him.

"You think someone like you can stop someone like me?" laughed Gio. "Sure, you may've defeated a big stone kitty, but you're looking at the worlds' most powerful Pokemon. I should know, I designed this body myself. And let me show you its features!" and he started throwing swift stars at Sandy hitting him like crazy.

"SANDY!" cried Cameron who was lying on the floor after being psyched out by Gio.

"PIKA, PI!" cried Pikachu as he stood beside Sandy and started to release a thunderbolt. But Gio had just created a barrier protecting himself from the electricity.

"Don't you get it you brainless little rodents?" laughed Gio. "This isn't like David and Goliath. I am the mighty Gio-Mewtwo, and no force on this planet can stop me!" and he fired more psychic blasts at Pikachu and Sandy who were trying to leap out of the way.

"PIKACHU!" cried the beat up Ash with tears in his eyes. "SANDY!" cried Cameron who did the same thing. Suddenly, both Ash and Cameron levitated from the floor and stood right behind their Pokemon. Gio stopped attacking for he was curious at what those two boys were doing, and so were all our heroes who managed to stand up as well. A glowing surge of energy started to leave Ash's and Cameron's bodies and they went right into Pikachu's and Sandy's. The two Pokemon suddenly felt the large amount of power and fired a powerful thunderbolt and a blinding sandstorm at Gio causing him to scream in pain.

"What's happening to them?!" gasped Misty as they all saw the two boys still giving their energy to their Pokemon who were still lashing out their electricity and sandstorm.

"I've heard about this", said Seymour. "It is said that if a Pokemon is ever in the most dangerous encounter of its life and its master really loves and cares for it, the master will magically transfer a hidden power into his or her Pokemon making it unstoppable with unlimited fighting power."

"Cameron-san really does care for his Sandshrew", thought Reiko as she watched silently while Cameron was making that cute glow. She also noticed that Gio was desperately increasing his barrier power trying to protect himself from the two powerful attacks. "Like the two Beedrills that try to make the worlds' largest hive by themselves, that is very difficult. We need more Pokemon to help those two brave ones." Just then she felt a tendril on her shoulder. Reiko turned around and smiled to see her beloved Tentacruel and Kingler. "Oh, my babies", smiled Reiko as she hugged them. "I am so glad to see that you're both safe. But now I must ask you to do me a favor."

"CRUEL, KING", said the two Pokemon ready to serve their loving master.

"I need you to use every ounce of your power to defeat that monster", said Reiko. "Those two may not be able to do it alone.

"CRUEL!" said Tentacruel as it released its acid attack on Gio. "KING!" said Kingler as it blew a blizzard right at Gio while Pikachu and Sandy continued with their attacks. Everyone became amazed that this Rocket girl was helping them.

"Why are you all standing around like a bunch of Pokemon that've been paralyzed by stun spore?" demanded Reiko. "Lend a Pokemon to these brave heroes!" Everyone nodded their heads and released a Pokemon.

"Golduck, hydro pump!" commanded Misty.

"Golem, rock slide!" commanded Brock.

"Growlithe, flamethrower!" commanded Jenny.

"Doduo, whirlwind!" commanded Seymour.

Stella was about to release her Tangela, until her Mr. Mime jumped into the action. "Mime?" asked Stella. "But you can't fight now. After what you've been through!"

"MR. MIME!" shouted Mr. Mime as he released his psywave attack at Gio. "Still as stubborn as usual", said Stella while smiling.

Bill's Rattata then jumped out its master's arms and joined in the battle using its swift attack. "I never knew my Rattata had that attack", said Bill amazed. "I could've have fun with that!"

"Shall we join in the fight Grandson?" Prof. Oak asked Gary as he put a comforting hand on his shoulder. Gary, who no longer felt grievous after what happened said. "Let's do it Gramps!" and they each released one Pokemon.

"Magnemite, sonicboom!" commanded the Professor.

"Venusaur, solarbeam!" commanded Gary as their attacks joined in with the others.

Ryan and Lulu definitely wanted to be rid of that horrible beast forever. They've been waiting five and a half long years for this day. Then Ryan released his Hitmonchan and Lulu one of her Beedrills.

"HC, comet punch!" commanded Ryan.

"Beeswax, pin missile!" commanded Lulu. And the energy blows from HC's fists and the pins from Beeswax's stingers joined in with all the other countless attacks.

"You really think you can all stop me?!" shouted Gio as he kept increasing his barrier power but couldn't attack back. "Keep it up! You'll all conk out from exhaustion soon and then I'll be here to clean up the mess, which'll be all of you! HA HA HA HA HA!"

* * * * * *

Outside, all the rebels and the citizens saw and heard the fireworks that were going on at the top of the palace. The giant Meowth head that was on the top, started to crumble and crack causing its right eye to fall off making it match the original Meowth that posed for it. "Oh Ash!" cried Mrs. Ketchum desperately hoping that her baby would come out of this alive.

* * * * * *

As the Pokemon kept launching their attacks, two figures had suddenly teleported into the room. It was Sabrina along with Agatha. "It looks like we got here at just the right time", said Sabrina.

"But I thought you were scared of Mewtwo", asked Agatha.

"But this isn't the same Mewtwo", said Sabrina. "It's a corporate Rocket bully in Mewtwo's clothing and I'm gonna defeat it once and for all!" and she released her Haunter who no longer had any fear of Mewtwo either. "Haunter, nightshade attack!" commanded Sabrina as Haunter blasted its shadow at Gio.

"Count me in as well!" said Agatha as she released her Umbreon and studied Gio's face. "Perfect!" she smiled. "That monster has its eyes closed. Umbreon, give it your nightmare attack!"

"UM!" cried Umbreon as it released a dark energy at Gio. Gio tried his best to build up more barriers but the oncoming powers of ground, electric, poison, ice, water, rock, fire, flying, psychic, normal, steel, grass, fighting, bug, ghost, and darkness were completely draining Gio's power.

"At least there's no dragon type here", Gio thought but he spoke too soon. A huge Dragonite had burst through the ceiling and on its back was Blaine.

"I got your psychic message Sabrina", said Blaine, "Dragonite and I are here to lend a hand and claw. Or better yet, a mouth! Give it your dragonbreath, Dragonite!"

"DRAAGG!" shouted Dragonite as it fired hot breaths of fire at Gio. That did it. The combined attacks of every known type of Pokemon along with the power that Ash and Cameron were feeding into their own Pokemon were just too much for Gio. He made a loud howl and the entire room exploded. But luckily no one got killed for Sabrina had used her psychic powers to protect everyone.

"Is it over?" asked Brock as he looked around.

"Does all that answer your question?" asked Stella as she pointed to all the white and purple ooze all over the place showing them that Gio-  
Mewtwo was no more. And where he was standing were Jessie, James, and Meowth on the floor shaking frantically.

"We did it Ash!" cried Misty happily. "Actually, you and Cameron started it all! You're both heroes! Uh, Ash? ASH!!!" cried Misty as she saw Ash lying on the floor unconscious while a tear filled Reiko was holding an unconscious Cameron in her arms.

"NO ASH!" cried Misty as she ran over and hugged her long lost love. Everyone became sad and silent as they saw the two heroes who had just given up their lives lying there motionless. Sandy desperately tried licking the life back into Cameron and it seemed to work. "Sandy, we did it!" smiled Cameron as he opened his eyes. "After this, I'll never look at my Gameboy the same again!"

"SANDSHREW!" cried Sandy as he started slurping Cameron some more.

"CAMERON-SAN!" cried Reiko as she hugged him tightly with all her ninja strength.

"Uh, Reiko!" gasped Cameron while his eyes grew even bigger than his glasses. "I'm okay now. You can stop killing me now!"

"Oops, sorry Cameron-san", said Reiko blushing as she gave him a long good kiss."

"Oh Ash!" cried Misty who couldn't seem to wake him up at all.

"PIKACHU!" cried Pikachu hoping that his old shocking method that usually woke Ash up in the past still worked. He fired a thunderbolt at Ash along with Misty who was still holding him.

"AAAAAH! PIKACHU!" screamed Misty. "Why are you doing this? Are you trying to send me into the afterlife so I can join my Ash?"

"It must've worked, cause I think I'm in Heaven", mumbled Ash's voice who just opened his eyes at a most beautiful sight.

"ASH!" cried Misty as she hugged her guy while giving him a big kiss.

"PIKA, PI!" cried Pikachu while letting loose happy thundershocks. Our heroes became extremely happy at the sight they were seeing and applauded for the two heroes of the day. Suddenly they saw some of Mewtwo's leftover ooze starting to bubble and take a new form.

"Oh no, he's coming back to take revenge on us!" thought Cameron remembering how that usually happened on Dragonball Z.

"Relax my friends", called out a cute little voice. "The ooze suddenly formed into a smaller version of Mewtwo. "I am here to help you", it said.

"I can't believe it!" gasped Sabrina, Seymour, and Bill. "IT'S MEW!"

"Mew?!" gasped both Ash and Cameron as they both took out their Pokedex's.

"MEW", replied both Dexter and Dexeena. "A mythical Pok mon of South America which has been thought extinct. A growing number of people have seen it recently.

"I can't believe we're actually face to face with the legendary Mew!" gasped Seymour while polishing his glasses to the extreme so he could get a better view of it.

"It's not dangerous, is it?!" asked Stella nervously.

"Of course not", said Bill. "Those who have said they've seen it said that Mew is a friendly fun loving Pokemon who wants to make people happy."

"That is correct", said Mew as it flew around happily making figure- eights in the air. "And I want to thank you all for freeing me from that evil prison called Mewtwo."

"You mean you've been a victim of the mindjail beam too?" asked Ash. "How come we've never seen you all these years?"

"A long time ago I was captured by an evil man named Giovanni", explained Mew. "He and his scientists ejected me with all sorts of horrible chemicals which forced me to develop into the beast known as Mewtwo along with making my mind evil and twisted. But now that you've destroyed Mewtwo, you've set my hidden innocent-self free. And I know the perfect way to repay all of you."

Before anyone could say a word, Mew suddenly flew around the town and started to cover everything up with some kind of pink psychic dust. Suddenly a miracle happened. All of the damage and suffering that Team Rocket had caused was all erased. The smog disappeared showing off the sun and blue sky, the trees got back their leaves and the grounds got back their grass and flowers, the factories suddenly disappeared and were replaced by all the houses that the citizens had lost over the years. And finally the palace they were all in got replaced by the original town hall that the Rockets had demolished to make room for their palace.

"It's a miracle!" smiled Ash as he and the others looked out the window and saw Pallet Town restored back to its beautiful, peaceful stage while all the citizens were dancing and cheering with joy. Even Mrs. Ketchum who just saw her boy looking out the window and happily blew him a kiss. Then our heroes released all their Pokemon so they could see the miracle that just happened and they started dancing and cheering as well. Then Ash and Misty kissed, Brock kissed Stella, Seymour kissed Jenny, Ryan kissed Lulu, and even Bill kissed his Rattata!

Then Bill approached Blaine and his Dragonite and stared awestruck at the huge dragon. "Hello Mr. Dragonite", Bill stuttered. "It's me Bill. I don't know if you remember me, but I own a lighthouse on a beach near Vermilion City. I kept dreaming I'd meet you one day and it finally happened!" and he bowed down to him.

"DRAG!" cooed Dragonite as it gave Bill a gentle slurp for he did recognize the friendly looking guy in that lighthouse a long time ago.

"Why don't you keep him?" asked Blaine.

"You're giving your Dragonite to me?!" gasped Bill.

"Of course", smiled Blaine. "You were the first to discover it before me so you should be its trainer. And besides, I'm a fire Pokemon trainer, not a dragon trainer. What do you say Dragonite? I think this guy would treat you better than I could."

"DRAGONITE!" smiled Dragonite as it slurped Blaine and then picked up Bill and started hugging its new master affectionately.

"Thank you", smiled Bill with tears while Dragonite still hugged him like crazy.

Prof Oak and Gary hugged each other and then Gary silently approached Ash. Ash stood there silently wondering what his old rival was gonna say or do. Gary smiled and extended his hand to him. "Put it there Pokemon master!" he said.

"Thanks old friend", said Ash. Prof. Oak smiled knowing that his grandson had made friends again with Ash just like when they were babies. "Hello Samuel Oak", said an old lady's voice. Prof. Oak turned around and blushed at who he just saw.

"Agatha?!" he gasped happily.

"It's been a long time Samuel", smiled Agatha. "And I see you still got your hair."

"And I see you've still got your, uh... uh... wrinkles!" said Prof. Oak. "No wait, that wasn't right. I'm sorry!" he stuttered.

"Aw, you're still the same old kook I remember", laughed Agatha as she went over and kissed him on the cheek.

Cameron looked into Reiko's red eyes and were about to kiss each other. "Oh, wait Cameron-san, I almost forgot", said Reiko as she pinned the EarthBadge on Cameron's shirt. "When I kicked her royal vileness, Jessie across the room, she had dropped the EarthBadge. So I present it to you Cameron-san. You truly are the worlds' greatest Pokemon master in my eyes!" And then she removed Cameron's glasses and looked into his handsome green eyes. Then they kissed lovingly while Sandy made a happy claw's up at his master.

"Cameron", said Mew as he suddenly appeared right between him and Reiko. "I also want to give you something."

"What is it?" asked Cameron.

"A message from Heaven", said Mew as he suddenly vanished and a man in a white suit appeared. Cameron immediately recognized the man. "Hi Son", he said.

"DAD!" cried Cameron as he was about to hug his late father but then went right through him.

"Sorry son", said Mr. Fusterman. "But I am a ghost now, but don't worry. You'll be hugging me again soon. But not too soon though. I want you to live out your new life here till you're old and gray."

"I'm sorry about what happened to you", said Cameron. "I saw the car accident."

"I know you did", said Mr. Fusterman. "I've been watching you throughout your Pokemon journey. You know, at first I thought this Pokemon stuff was just another fad that you might outgrow someday and you'll end up looking back at all the Pokemon merchandise you've wasted your allowance on. I was totally surprised when I found out that this Pokemon world was actually real and you were now a part of it. And you've really handled yourself great here. I'm very proud of you son."

"Thank you Dad", said Cameron with a tear in his eye. "So you don't mind if I stay in this world from now on?"

"Of course not", laughed Mr. Fusterman. "I have learned about that nasty future back in the real world where you die at 31 and I'm happy for this world you're in and the new family you've made. Just always treat them right, eat your vegetables, read your bible every night and pray, and always think of your old man wherever you're on any future Pokemon journeys. I love you son!"

"And I love you Dad!" smiled Cameron with tears in his eyes while everyone smiled at the magical sight. Then Cameron slowly watched his Dad fade away.

"Reiko, please take good care of my son", said Mr. Fusterman as he totally disappeared out of everyone's sight.

"I will sir", whispered Reiko smiling and then stared at the boy who totally changed her life for the good.

EPILOGUE

All the Rockets were sent to jails across the country. Jessie and James were sentenced to life in an island prison somewhere in the east. It showed an image of them breaking rocks with sledgehammers. Actually Jessie was using a toothpick to break the rocks for the guards took away her sledgehammer when she kept bopping James with it.

Unfortunately poor Reiko had to go to juvenile hall for the crimes she committed, but she knew she deserved it though. Luckily, Pallet Jenny convinced the judge to shorten her sentence to a few years for the help she gave them against the Rockets and Cameron promised Reiko that he'd visit her whenever he could. And Reiko's Tentacruel and Kingler were transported over to the Fuchsia gym where they would be in the care of Reiko's siblings until her sentence was done.

Meowth, along with the Rockets' Pokemon were going to be transported to different gym leaders all over the world so they could get the proper love and guidance they never had. Meowth with an eye-patch was too busy dazed from everything that happened that day to realize what was going to happen to him.

Ryan suddenly saw the Victreebel that one of the Jennies had confiscated from James and ran up to it. Victreebel looked at Ryan and instead of chomping on him, it hugged Ryan lovingly with its large leaves. For Victreebel was once the Weepinbell that Ryan owned many years ago. One day it got injured so Ryan had to send it to the Pokemon center to get Weepinbell healed. But however, the Rocket trio had robbed that center and James claimed Ryan's Weepinbell for himself, which soon later evolved into Victreebel. Vic truly missed Ryan and did not like James as its new master. Whenever it had the chance, Vic would try to gobble up James hoping that would force him to release it. Now that Vic was reunited with its original loving master, it could be a happy innocent Pokemon once again.

Seymour had given the Clefairy Clan back their Moonstones and he escorted them all back to Mt. Moon so they could live happy peaceful lives once again.

Jenny had made Cameron an official citizen of Pallet Town and appointed herself as his legal guardian. She even gave him a special room in her police station home.

A month later, all of the citizens and the heroes had gathered into the town hall for a freedom banquet. Everyone was talking while eating deliciously prepared food made by Mrs. Ketchum and the moms of Pallet Town.

Ash and Misty were at a table making googly eyes at each other while kissing every few minutes. Pikachu and Togepi watched them from under the table.

"Why is mommy acting funny in front of that guy?" asked Togepi.

"You'll know when you're older", whispered Pikachu.

"I am older!" protested Togepi. "I'm six fingers old!"

"Pika, pi!" laughed Pikachu.

Brock had invited his entire family over where they watched Stella and her circus staff of people and Pokemon perform for them. Brock was happy that Stella was nicer to her old Pokemon along with her new Pokemon as well. "She could make a great mother one day", he thought while smiling.

Seymour saw Jenny talking to someone and nervously approached her. "Officer Jenny", he asked while holding out a ring. "Will you marry me?" Jenny just angrily scowled at him and hit him with a huge salami that was on the table and left. Seymour became confused and crushed, but was helped up by another Jenny. The Pallet Jenny.

"Hi Seymour", she smiled at him. "I see you've met my cousin, the Neon Town Jenny. Please forgive her. She tends to be cranky all the time. Hey, is that an engagement ring?!" she smiled as she picked up the ring that was by Seymour's feet. "Yes, I'll marry you!" she cried happily before Seymour could even say a word. He just smiled on the inside but then realized that he'd have to study all of his future in-laws for they all looked like his Jenny and they had the same name as hers. But it was worth it spending the rest of his life with his favorite Jenny.

Bill was there too, and he had a Nurse Joy holding onto his arm. During the journey, Bill was treated by the Celadon City Joy and had fallen in love with her. Now that he was human again, he could truly start dating her.

Gary had won the love of at least one of his cheerleaders when she heard how he had helped defeat Gio-Mewtwo. And since then, he treated this girl with respect, which he never really did with his other girls.

The crowd suddenly quieted down when Prof, Oak tapped his glass and stood up. "May I have your attention please?" he called out. "For over five and a half years, we the innocent citizens of Pallet Town fell under the dark tyranny of the evil Team Rocket. We had all been tormented and pushed around by those awful Rockets. But luckily, some of us, including myself, hid out in the sewers and started an underground rebellion where we helped out the poor citizens. And I just want to propose a toast to all the brave and loyal members of the Pallet Rebellion."

Everyone cheered as they all tapped their glasses together while Agatha kissed the Professor on the cheek.

"I also want to give a special thanks to two special people", continued the Professor. "At first I built a device that would teleport a hero back home, but instead I brought back a different hero. He led 3 of our rebels along with 3 other brave and true friends to far away places where he got help from gym leaders and brought back our own hometown hero. Then they returned and freed us all from Team Rocket along with destroying a deadly monster that may've conquered the entire world. So I want to put this statue in the middle of our town to honor two great guys and their Pokemon!"

And a sheet was pulled off a huge monument. Everyone applauded when they saw what it was. It was a huge pedestal that read, "HEROES". Standing on it were statues of Ash and Cameron and by their feet were statues of Pikachu and Sandy. "PIKA!" said Pikachu with stars in his eyes. "SHREW!" said Sandy with also the same feelings. Ash and Cameron stood there blushing while Brock and Misty urged them to go up and make some speeches.

"I don't know what to say", said Ash blushing. "First of all, I'm so happy to be back home with my wonderful mother along with all my friends, especially my girlfriend Misty and my best friend Pikachu. And I want you to know that the Indigo Pokemon League games will be starting in a few months and I'll be leaving Pallet once again to compete in the Indigo League and I'm gonna try to bring home the trophy for all you good people of Pallet."

Everyone cheered and applauded for Ash. "I'm so proud of you honey!" called out Mrs. Ketchum with tears in her eyes.

"You're not the only one", sighed Misty with stars in her eyes.

"And Cameron", continued Ash. "I'd like you to train with me and compete in the League too. That way in case I lose, you can win the trophy for both of us and for Pallet as well."

"You can be sure I will Ash", said Cameron proudly.

"Now it's time for your speech Cameron", called out Brock.

"Well, uh..." stuttered Cameron. "I'm not really good with speeches and I don't really consider myself the hero type either. But I'm proud to now be a citizen of your wonderful town and to be with all you welcoming and caring people and Pokemon, Especially you Sandy. Being sent here was the best thing that ever happened to me in my entire life. And I will be grateful for it every day!

Everyone applauded while Cameron and Ash went back to their seats. "Will you excuse me please?" Cameron asked his friends. "There's something I need to do in another room." And he went to the kitchen.

"You sly Growlithe you!" winked Ash for he knew where he was going.

"SHHHUH-REW!" smiled Sandy slyly.

"Can you give me just a few minutes please?" Cameron asked an Officer Jenny. She smiled for Pallet Jenny had told her about him and the prisoner that was on work detail in the kitchen. She left Cameron alone and he approached the pretty girl in blue jeans and a prison shirt mopping the floor. Reiko smiled with delight as she dropped her mop and ran over to her guy, but slipped on the suds. Luckily she landed safely in Cameron's arms.

"Oh my radiant Reiko", he sighed. "Like the Slowpoke that takes its time while the whole world is rushing. You should learn to take things easy as well." And he slowly walked her over to a part of the floor that hadn't been waxed yet.

"Oh Cameron-chan!" sighed Reiko as she hugged him. "I have been taking my time. In fact, I am serving lots of time. I just wish it could go by a bit faster."

"Actually, I was hoping this moment of time would go slow for us", said Cameron as he took a portable CD player from his tuxedo jacket and played a bunch of slow dance songs. "Care to dance my graceful little ninja?" he asked while taking Reiko's hand and kissing it.

"But Cameron-san", she said while looking at her uniform. "I'm not properly dressed!"

"That's okay", he smiled as he took off his jacket and tuxedoed shirt revealing a white T-shirt with a Pokeball on it. "Neither am I!" Reiko just laughed quietly as they danced to the wonderful music and it did feel like time had stopped just for them. Mainly because Sabrina had used her powers to freeze time for a while just for them.

"Good luck in your new life my friendly alien!" smiled Sabrina.

THE END

AUTHOR'S FINAL NOTES:

Well, that's the end of the Incredible Poke-Odyssey and I want to thank everyone who made this adventure possible.

The fans at the Pokemon Fanfic Mailing List who e-mailed me wonderful compliments and kept encouraging me to keep writing it.

Friends like Bellossom Boy, Ben Hertzog, Gundam_Wildfire X, and Emmanuel Jones for giving me ideas throughout the story's construction.

Sandra Chan, Misty X, McWizard X, Mega Raichu, and Zeth Raltier for posting my fanfic on their websites.

Nintendo, Game Freak, 4Kids Entertainment, and Kids' WB for introducing us all to the wonderful world of Pokemon.

And to God for giving me a wonderful gift called imagination. I thank my Heavenly Father every day for it.

Thank you all for letting me share this story with you. It was worth a whole year of typing it. ^_^


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